FED IS STILL FUELLING THE RISK TRADE November 18, 2009 JANE FOLEYRESEARCH DIRECTOR, FOREX.COM CAUTIOUS expectations for growth in the world’s major economies haave seen market commentators predict that risk appetite will be pared back over the coming months. But despite all this talk, the risk trade suffered only a brief decline following the shock rise in the US unemployment rate to 10.2 per cent [...]
Japan will become the land of the falling yen November 17, 2009 RATHER worryingly for Japanese exporters and the policymakers trying to prop them up during the recession, the yen has staged two attempts in as many days at breaking below the ¥89 level. Yesterday it fell as low as ¥88.74, close to the Japanese currency’s all-time low of ¥87.11 against the dollar, which it hit in [...]
Bid talk pushes Dana higher as FTSE 100 loses its grip November 17, 2009 A retreat in miners and banks offset strength in defensive utilities and food retailers yesterday, pushing the FTSE 100 lower by 0.7 per cent lower, ending four consecutive sessions of gains. The index closed 36.74 points lower at 5,345.93, giving back some gains from the previous session when shares hit a 14-month closing high. Mid-cap [...]
Broker views give US indices a boost November 17, 2009 US STOCKS rose to fresh 13-month highs yesterday as upbeat broker views on improving prospects for two Dow components offset disappointing holiday spending outlooks from Target and Home Depot. Even so, the underlying tone was negative as investors fretted about the strength of the recovery and the recent rally, and more stocks fell than rose. [...]
INVESTORS DIVERSIFY WITH ETFS November 17, 2009 NIZAM HAMIDHEAD OF SALES STRATEGY, SHARES IIT IS often said that one of the biggest advantages of having Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) in your portfolio is that ETFs are inherently diverse, because they are based on an underlying basket of securities and are available on a wide range of asset classes. The financial crisis highlighted [...]
A COPENHAGEN WISH LIST FOR BUSINESS November 17, 2009 TIM BAINESNORTON ROSE LLP PRESIDENT Obama may have decided that there is little prospect of a binding agreement coming out of next month’s Copenhagen conference. He spoke yesterday about an “accord” that has “immediate operational effect”. Against this, many leading businesses have called for an ambitious and robust global deal. So what should business wish [...]
Central bank slows rocky rouble’s rally November 17, 2009 WHILE its Bric counterparts of Brazil, India and China have been relatively unaffected by the global downturn, the Russian economy has suffered more than most. With approximately 60 per cent of its exports dependent on oil, a slump in the crude price during the second half of 2008 proved disastrous. But a recovering oil price [...]
FOREX FLASH November 17, 2009 Bank fuels new high for the poundSterling hit its highest level in a year against the US dollar yesterday after Bank of England MPC member Andrew Sentance said in a speech on Monday night that he believed the UK had emerged from recession and that loose monetary policy cannot continue indefinitely. Mark O’Sullivan at Currencies [...]
THE TIPSTER November 17, 2009 OPTIMISTIC comments earlier this week from Bank of England committee member Andrew Sentance saw sterling-US dollar march higher, hitting a year high against the buck during mid-morning trading yesterday. But although the inflation bounce added extra fuel to yesterday’s spike, the move higher proved to be unsustainable. There’s likely to be a clear psychological barrier [...]