As with many global indices the UK FTSE has benefitted from the loose monetary policies of countries such as the USA and Japan in 2013. The trillions of yen and dollars, pumped into the higher levels of finance at the very top of the food chain by way of monetary easing/asset purchase schemes, caused many […]
Many trend/swing traders will have been ‘caught short’ during the exponential rise of EUR/USD last Friday December 27th. With hindsight it’s quite straightforward to analyse and pinpoint the reasons for the move which saw the major currency pair gain up to circa 200 pips in a two hour window. Firstly, the Bundesbank head and member
The exiting bailout stories are scheduled to come thick and fast in 2014. The much heralded ‘poster boy’ for good austerity behaviour, Ireland, exited in late 2013. But despite the muted celebrations very little has changed visibly in the country’s economy. Unemployment is still incredibly high (in terms of European standards), whilst approximately 400K of
Greece will leave bailout scheme in 2014, according to Prime Minister Samaras Read More »
In a relatively slow day for news events that could affect market sentiment European retail data for December has been published this morning. The print came in at 47.7, down from the 48 in November. The fall would had been steeper had Italy’s retail PMI not reached a 33 month high. WTI oil has once
Europe begins our week of high impact news events on Monday with Markit Economics publishing its latest retail PMI for the 17 nation shared currency area. The prediction is for a print of circa 48, similar to the previous month. Attention then turns to the UK with the publication of the latest monthly housing equity
Trend analysis week beginning December 29th Read More »
As Friday develops we’re beginning to witness a sense of ‘normality’ returning to the markets after the Xmas holiday. Key relevant data is beginning to be published. Markit Economics published its PMI on Japan’s manufacturing sector indicating that the level had reached a 7.5 year high. New order and employment growth in the region grew
As 2013 ends it’s the perfect time for traders to evaluate many aspects of their trading. In a recent blog post we covered the subject of New Year trading resolutions; we highlighted some of the key improvements traders could make to their trading habits in order to encourage more proficient and profitable trading in 2014.
In a relatively quiet trading day, due to many European bourses being closed for a bank holiday, the main high impact news focused on the weekly unemployment claims from the USA. The data came in much better than excepted, however, the previous week’s upward revisions took the shine off the data, as did the rolling
USA unemployment claims print better than anticipated on Thursday Read More »
European markets are closed on Thursday for a bank holiday therefore volatility and trading activity in the markets will be ‘thin’. In the overnight session yen reached a six year low versus the greenback as investors speculate that the BOJ will continue to maintain its stimulus (of circa $66 billion per month) whilst the USA
As the year closes we get an opportunity as traders to assess what we’ve achieved during the year. Not just in monetary terms, although that’s the primary reason we gravitate towards trading – profit, we get to analyse other aspects of our trading which may have represented achievements in the year… Could it be that
Trader New Year resolutions Read More »
