A Day Of Range Trading

27-01-2011

The broad markets experienced a true day of tight range trading on Wednesday as investors seemingly tried to gather themselves after nearly two weeks of rather swift trading. The USD remains on the weaker side of its range against the EUR and the GBP did manage to drift towards a slightly higher value after Tuesday’s rather negative day. The Federal Reserve released its FOMC Statement last night, but it provided very little in the way of surprises. The Fed continues to take the stance that the economy remains stable and shows signs of growing, but that the jobless numbers remain a concern. It also said that it has made no changes to its quantitative easing policies announced last month. New Homes Sales numbers from the States did produce a better result with a number of 329k, but the previous month’s figure was revised downward. Wall Street was able to turn in a slightly positive day of trading also.

Today the Americans will release weekly Unemployment Claims, Core Durable Goods Orders, and Pending Home Sales. All three sets of data are important. The jobless situation in the States is set to become a politically hot potato once again and the numbers have shown little real improvement. Today’s expectation of 407k would be worse than last week’s result. Core Durable Goods are anticipated to improve by 0.9% and after last month’s good number this report will be looked to for any possible surprises. The housing market remains hard pressed to create positive news and the main ingredient in the sector is the fact that home prices are still creeping lower which means demand is lackluster at best. Tomorrow the Advance GDP awaits and this report will be watched carefully. The USD has been battered in the short term and its long term outlook remains a source of debate with so many questions abounding in the investment world. While a stronger U.S. economy is seen by some and has how allowed risk appetite to form some nice momentum, there are cautionary signs that are numerous also.

The EUR and GBP both had relatively a quiet day taking into context their recent trading. A day after declining on a poor GDP report the Sterling managed to find some stability. The EUR continues to sit perched at the higher end of its range against the USD and though it found consolidated trading on Wednesday it showed little signs of retracing. The U.K. released its BBA Mortgage Approvals yesterday and it turned in a disappointing result of 28.7k. Today the U.K. will see the CBI Realized Sales reading and a mark of 37 is anticipated. There was little hard data from Europe yesterday but the annual economic meetings in Davos, Switzerland are taking place and have given business leaders and international officials a platform to express their concerns ranging from the debt crisis, commodity inflation, and government spending and austerity measures. Both the EUR and GBP could continue to find strength if risk appetite remains prevalent.

The JPY and AUD both traded in range on Wednesday. The price of Gold did stage a bit of a comeback and finds itself at 1344.50 USD an ounce as of this writing. The Asian markets continue to exhibit mixed results as those with a taste for risk battle those who are more cautious. Traders should be well aware that divergence still exists in the broad markets and that currencies are finding a daily fight as ranges are having pressure put on them because of the wide range of opinions that lurk.

Trends Reverse…Slightly 17-05-2012

The Euro is up slightly against the greenback during early European trading on Thursday, but remains far below levels from two weeks ago. The EUR/USD is up 0.18% and trading at 1.2739 this morning, rebounding from a 0.10% decline during yesterday’s trading in the United States that saw the pair close the session at 1.2717. The Dollar is [...]

The Collapse of Oil Prices Continues 16-05-2012

Early trading on Wednesday saw a continuing trend of investor concern towards the Greek political crisis and a rush to the greenback. With the chance of Greece leaving the Eurozone more likely with each passing day, the Euro continues to struggle against the Dollar. The EUR/USD is down 0.11% in early European trading this morning, at [...]

European Uncertainty 15-05-2012

The U.S. Dollar was up against most major currencies on Monday, as investor uncertainty regarding the Greek political crisis continued to push investors towards the safe haven of the greenback. The Euro is up slightly at the beginning of the European trading session on Tuesday by 0.05%, sitting at 1.2828. The Euro has declines sharply [...]

Euro Falls Once Again 14-05-2012

Political uncertainty in Greece and mass protests in Spain has pushed the EUR/USD down 0.15% to 1.2897 during late Asian trading on Monday. In fact, the greenback was either steady or up against most major currencies as traders searched for a temporary safe haven in order to dodge uncertainty in the markets. The increased value of the [...]

Time Is Ticking For Greece 11-05-2012

The Euro is back on the decline during Asian trading on Friday, with the EUR/USD down 0.14% and trading at 1.2920. The pair continues to hover at around 1.3000 after the single currency took a major hit due to fears surrounding political instability in Greece and future fiscal policy in France. The pound is also down against the greenback [...]

Euro Declines Stop 10-05-2012

The Euro has rebounded slightly against the USD during Asian trading on Thursday after posting huge losses over the last several days. The EUR/USD is up 0.15% and trading at 1.2946. The majority of major currencies are also up against the greenback this morning, including the Pound, Swiss Franc and Australian Dollar. The Aussie posted [...]

Euro Decline Continues 09-05-2012

The beginning of trading on Wednesday continued the negative trend of the Euro and oil. The Euro continues to decline sharply, down 0.24% and trading at 1.2975. The EUR/USD broke through the 1.3000 barrier earlier this week after European elections in France and Greece cast a shadow over the future of the single currency. The Euro is also [...]

Declines Continue for Oil and Euro 08-05-2012

The Euro is down once again during late Asian trading on Monday, after suffering huge losses yesterday. The EUR/USD is down 0.15% and trading at 1.3032. The single currency did manage to recover somewhat during late trading yesterday, rebounding from a decline of 0.81% at the end of the Asian trading session. Investors continue to show [...]

Future of the Euro in Doubt? 07-05-2012

Two key election results in the European Union are threatening to undo the single currency. Francois Hollande is the new president of France, after defeating Nicolas Sarkozy by a small margin in the second round of elections. Hollande is the first socialist president in France in the last seventeen years. Many voters in France expressed [...]

Oil Prices Plummet 04-05-2012

Oil prices plummeted during the U.S. trading session on Thursday after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi expressed concern over future growth of the EU economy. The price of crude was down 2.48% and trading at 102.61 USD per barrel. Oil was also hit hard because Draghi claimed that ECB was not planning to increase liquidity in [...]

Go Back