The Fed convenes for the last time in 2013 and the option to taper bond buys is certainly on the table. Will the Fed follow through with its roadmap from June and announce the beginning of the of Quantitative Easing? Here are no less than 11 reasons for Ben Bernanke and his colleagues to push … “11 reasons for QE tapering in December”
Month: December 2013
Loonie Loses Ground as Traders Await Taper News
The Canadian dollar is most at risk for weakness in a situation that involves the Federal Reserve in the United States tapering its asset purchase program. As a result, the loonie is experiencing a degree of weakness as Forex traders await the outcome of a two-day Fed meeting slated to end today. With the United States as Canada’s largest trading partner, the fact that there is a divergence in monetary policy is weighing on the loonie. In fact, among G-7 nations, … “Loonie Loses Ground as Traders Await Taper News”
Japanese Yen Weaker Against Major Counterparts
Japanese yen is weaker today, thanks in large part to the continued efforts to maintain stimulus measures in Japan. The latest trade deficit data doesn’t appear to be changing anything at this point, either. In November, Japan saw a year over year rise of 1.29 trillion in its trade deficit. This is a new record, as well as the 17th straight month of a deficit for Japan. The big difference is due mostly to energy. While … “Japanese Yen Weaker Against Major Counterparts”
How to spot a currency crisis
Since the advent of paper money, there have been numerous examples of currency crises which have caught many investors off guard. In fact, some of the most dramatic examples have been in relatively recent times. In 1994, for example, the Mexican Peso crumbled leaving it massively devalued and resulting in the country needing financial aid … “How to spot a currency crisis”
EUR Strong vs. USD & GBP on Economic Sentiment & CPI
The euro rose against the US dollar and the Great Britain pound today as economic sentiment improved in Germany and the whole eurozone, while inflation accelerated. The currency was weaker versus the Japanese yen. The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for Germany improved by 7.4 points to 62.0 in December, the best result since April 2006. The indicator for the eurozone gained 8.1 points to 68.3. Eurozone annual inflation accelerated to 0.9 percent in November from 0.7 percent … “EUR Strong vs. USD & GBP on Economic Sentiment & CPI”
Koruna Slides as Czech Central Bank Maintains Intervention
The Czech koruna dropped today as the nation’s central bank maintained interest rates near zero and reiterated its commitment to intervene on the Forex market to keep the currency from excessive appreciation. The Czech National Bank announced today: ⢠At the close of the meeting the Board decided unanimously to leave interest rates unchanged. The two-week repo rate remains at 0.05%, the discount rate at 0.05% and the Lombard rate at 0.25%. ⢠The Board also decided to continue using … “Koruna Slides as Czech Central Bank Maintains Intervention”
Greenback Gets Boost After Inflation Data
US dollar is slightly higher today, following the latest inflation data. Also helping the greenback is a bit of risk aversion that seems to have returned ahead of what some expect will be a “Santa Claus rally” next week. Greenback is a little higher today as the Federal Reserve begins its last two-day meeting of 2013 — and Ben Bernanke‘s last meeting as the Chair. Next year, Janet Yellen is … “Greenback Gets Boost After Inflation Data”
Why the Fed is unlikely to change forward guidance
Apart from the all important decision on QE tapering, the Fed could also consider changing the thresholds for keeping the interest rate at exceptionally low levels. The Fed’s unemployment threshold (not an automatic trigger), is 6.5%, and was set in December 2012. At the time, the unemployment rate was 7.7% (for November 2012) and the … “Why the Fed is unlikely to change forward guidance”
Will tapering begin on Wednesday?
US Federal Reserve (Fed) bank policymakers are meeting this week, high on the agenda will be whether to begin the end of its quantitative easing programme – a process known as tapering. Most analysts are predicting that the Fed will not introduce tapering until next year, however the strong recent employment figures from the US, … “Will tapering begin on Wednesday?”
Pound Pares Gains as Inflation Slows
The Great Britain pound was rising today, but pared gains after data showed that Britain’s consumer inflation unexpectedly slowed last month, though not very much. The Consumer Price Index rose 2.1 percent in November from a year ago, while analysts have hoped that the rate of growth would stay at October’s 2.2 percent. There were some other worse-than-expected data from the United Kingdom … “Pound Pares Gains as Inflation Slows”