The US dollar strengthened against most of its major counterpart after the report showed today that the number of unemployment claims in the US dropped significantly last week, despite Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’ prediction of higher unemployment. Bernanke said in his testimony yesterday: Notable declines in the unemployment rate in December and January, together with improvement in indicators of job openings and firms’ hiring plans, do provide some grounds for optimism … “US Dollar Gains as Unemployment Claims Decline”
Month: February 2011
Australian Dollar Drops with Decrease of Full-Time Employment
The Australian dollar declined today after the report showed that full-time employment of the Australians decreased in January, causing the speculation that Australia’s economy doesn’t grow fast enough to warrant an increase of the interest rates. Australian Bureau of Statistics reported today that the full-time employment decreased 8,000 to 8,022,400 in January. The report wasn’t completely negative, though, as the increase of the part-time employment caused the overall employment to increase by 24,000. AUD/USD declined today from … “Australian Dollar Drops with Decrease of Full-Time Employment”
GBP Falls vs. USD, Rises vs. EUR As BOE Keeps Policy Unchanged
The Great Britain pound strengthened against the euro and fell versus the US dollar after the Bank of England decided today to leave the interest rates and its program of asset purchases unchanged today. The Bank of Englandâs Monetary Policy Committee today voted to maintain the official Bank Rate paid on commercial bank reserves at 0.5 percent. The Committee also voted to maintain the stock of asset purchases financed by the issuance of central bank reserves at £200 billion. … “GBP Falls vs. USD, Rises vs. EUR As BOE Keeps Policy Unchanged”
Portugal Bailout Closer as ECB Stops Buying Bonds
The yields on Portugal’s’ bonds are breaking records, above 7.5%. This can be “blamed” on the European Central Bank, that didn’t buy any bonds in the pat two weeks. Without the support of Jean-Claude Trichet, money becomes very expensive for Portugal. The high lending levels are unsustainable in the long run, and may force an … “Portugal Bailout Closer as ECB Stops Buying Bonds”
IBFX Has 99.9% Execution Rate
Interbank FX had an outstanding execution rate of 99.9% during the month of January 2011. Michael Greenberg reports about these figures, and emphasizes that this refers to all deals sent by clients. While the overall rejection rate is 0.1%, trades of bigger sizes, between 5 to 50 lots, had a rejection rate of 0.3%. The … “IBFX Has 99.9% Execution Rate”
Forex Market Interview with Senior Currency Strategist, John Kicklighter
We are pleased to share a forex interview on this week’s major events and forex trends with the senior currency strategist at DailyFX.com, John Kicklighter. John specializes in combining fundamental and technical analysis with money management. John authors a number of regular articles forDailyFX.com, ranging in topics from basic fundamental forecasts for the G10 economies and … “Forex Market Interview with Senior Currency Strategist, John Kicklighter”
Japanese Yen Falls as Investors Prefer Risk
The healthy shape of the global economy prompts the investors to sell the Japanese yen in favor of the riskier assets, driving the currency down. Not only the higher-yielding currencies may be more attractive than the yen. The economic growth in the US causes talks about possible increase of the interest rates, increasing attractiveness of the US dollar, while the interest rates hike in Japan is considered to be far ahead. USD/JPY rose from 82.36 to 82.49 as of 14:06 … “Japanese Yen Falls as Investors Prefer Risk”
Egypt Strikes Widen – End of Mubarak Regime Closer
Workers in various Egyptian cities are on strike. When industry, newspapers and labor at the Suez canal come to a halt, Egyptian military strongmen might indeed find only one way to restore order – overthrow Hosni Mubarak and listen to the masses. The reports about strikes and protests of workers are intensifying: Railway technicians in … “Egypt Strikes Widen – End of Mubarak Regime Closer”
New Zealand Dollar Weakens as English Predicts Recession
The New Zealand dollar slid today as Bill English, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, said that the nation’s economy may slip back to recession in the second half of this year. English’s words by the economic data as New Zealand’s gross domestic product declined 0.2 percent in the third quarter of 2010 and the employment contacted in the fourth quarter. The global economy still looks good and can be supportive for the New Zealand currency. NZD/USD declined … “New Zealand Dollar Weakens as English Predicts Recession”
Sterling’s rate sensitivity
So should the Bank of England be thinking about raising rates? This is the question that is going to be preoccupying sterling today and tomorrow as the Bank of England meets to discuss interest rates. Guest post by FxPro Statistically, the risks are certainly higher this month. During the MPC’s history, exactly half of rate changes have … “Sterling’s rate sensitivity”