November 2017

Sterling slumps as political chaos grips the U.K. government, global equities lack direction, Gold’s safe haven appeal resurfaces

The U.K.’s political and Brexit situation is causing investors’ concern. News that certain major international U.S. banks will put London exit plans in place, unless favorable “soft Brexit” progress is made on the negotiations by January, added to ministers resigning, or being accused of the most sinister and grave forms of harassment, combined with the […]

Sterling slumps as political chaos grips the U.K. government, global equities lack direction, Gold’s safe haven appeal resurfaces Read More »

Doubts over Trump’s tax reforms causes USA equities to slip, yen rises, whilst Japan’s main index reaches a twenty five year high

Trump’s Republican Party are facing tough opposition from the Democrats, to push through their tax cut agenda, who have described the fiscal policy as a “total mess”. It must be noted that the DJIA and SPX have risen circa 22% since Trump was inaugurated and 30% YoY, not due to increased earnings or spectacular company

Doubts over Trump’s tax reforms causes USA equities to slip, yen rises, whilst Japan’s main index reaches a twenty five year high Read More »

Sterling surges despite Brexit and political uncertainty, U.S. dollar falls due to tax reform doubts, WTI oil spikes as Saudi political turmoil sparks fear of supply problems

Having fallen consistently versus several of its peers last week, as the BoE’s dovish monetary policy statement failed to satisfy investors, the U.K. pound recovered much of its lost ground on Monday; GPB/USD rose by circa 0.7%, whilst EUR/GBP fell by a similar amount. The gains, versus the majority of sterling’s peers, came despite Brexit

Sterling surges despite Brexit and political uncertainty, U.S. dollar falls due to tax reform doubts, WTI oil spikes as Saudi political turmoil sparks fear of supply problems Read More »

The euro could come under scrutiny on Monday, as the majority of economic calendar publications concern the Eurozone

Last week ended with the U.K. pound left reeling from the battering it took on Thursday, after the BoE announced a base rate rise of 0.25%. It wasn’t that the highly anticipated interest rise was already priced in, it was the accompanying dovish, forward guidance narrative, issued by the deputy and the governor of the

The euro could come under scrutiny on Monday, as the majority of economic calendar publications concern the Eurozone Read More »

WEEKLY MARKET SNAPSHOT 06/11-10/11|Interest rate decisions in Australia and New Zealand, European PMIs and Chinese economic data will be the outstanding events to monitor this coming week

Markit Economics will publish a multitude of PMIs for Europe during the coming week, these leading indicators provide a fascinating insight into where purchase managers believe their individual businesses and sectors may be headed, as such the indicators can prove to be predictive as they lead, they don’t lag. The Australian central bank the RBA,

WEEKLY MARKET SNAPSHOT 06/11-10/11|Interest rate decisions in Australia and New Zealand, European PMIs and Chinese economic data will be the outstanding events to monitor this coming week Read More »

Sterling crashes versus major peers; falls by 1.75% v EUR and 1.40% v USD, as Bank of England rule out further rate rises, in the short to medium term

The standard economic orthodoxy works like this; when a central bank raises its interest rate, the value of the domestic currency rises, even if the rise has been telegraphed through the media and forward guidance is issued by the central bank some weeks earlier, warning of the rate rise. Whilst the rate rise can often

Sterling crashes versus major peers; falls by 1.75% v EUR and 1.40% v USD, as Bank of England rule out further rate rises, in the short to medium term Read More »

The October NFP number is expected to bounce back when released on Friday, after the -33k ‘hurricane season’ number recorded for September

The September NFP (non-farm payroll) number was forecasted to be poor, due to the various hurricanes and tropical storms, which battered certain parts of the USA in September. Analysts and investors were therefore not shocked, when the number missed the forecast; coming in at -33k for the month. The first negative reading recorded since the

The October NFP number is expected to bounce back when released on Friday, after the -33k ‘hurricane season’ number recorded for September Read More »

FOMC keep rates on hold, U.S. equities rise, Trump appoints Powell as new Fed chair, Swiss franc and yen fall, DAX reaches record high

As forecasted by certain economists, who were polled by news agencies, the FOMC decided to keep the U.S. key interest rate on hold, at 1.25%, with a view to revisit the issue in December. The market reaction was subdued; EUR/USD and GBP/USD maintained similar levels to that seen before the announcement, with USD/JPY and USD/CHF

FOMC keep rates on hold, U.S. equities rise, Trump appoints Powell as new Fed chair, Swiss franc and yen fall, DAX reaches record high Read More »

The BoE are odds on to raise U.K. base rate on Thursday, will it signal a tightening of monetary policy, or will it be a one off inflation cooling measure?

On Thursday November 2nd the U.K.’s Bank of England, through its monetary policy committee, will announce its decision regarding the base interest rate. Currently at 0.25%, the general consensus, from the economists polled by the leading news agencies Bloomberg and Reuters, is for a rise to 0.5%. Despite the potential rise representing the first increase

The BoE are odds on to raise U.K. base rate on Thursday, will it signal a tightening of monetary policy, or will it be a one off inflation cooling measure? Read More »

Sterling surges due to positive Brexit talks and market anticipation of a base rate rise on Thursday, euro makes gains versus most peers, as GDP rises

The Eurozone delivered positive economic calendar news in the form of hard data on Wednesday, which caused the euro to rise versus many of its peers, with the notable exception of EUR/GBP, where the currency lost ground. GDP figures for the EZ beat both the Q3 and YoY forecasts, coming in at 0.6% and 2.5%

Sterling surges due to positive Brexit talks and market anticipation of a base rate rise on Thursday, euro makes gains versus most peers, as GDP rises Read More »