Category Archive: 4.) Marc to Market

Cool Video: CNBC-Asia–Brexit, Sterling, the Euro, and Dollar

I had the privilege to join Sri Jegarajah at CNBC Asia at the start of today's Asia Pacific session.  We had a broad chat about the dollar, Brexit, and the euro.  He gave me the opportunity to sketch out my views:1.  The dollar's entered a cyclical decline, and the "twin deficit" issue will likely frame the narrative. 

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FX Daily, December 14: Brexit Deal Hopes Lift Sterling

The fact that the UK and EU negotiators are still talking is seen as a constructive development and has spurred a sharp bounce in sterling.  It traded below $1.3150 before the weekend and is pushing above $1.3400 in the European morning. 

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FX Daily, December 11: Brexit Fears Weigh on Sterling

Overview:  The odds of a UK-EU agreement and new stimulus before year-end in the US have faded and are sapping risk appetites ahead of the weekend.  Although most Asia Pacific equity markets gained, China and Australia were notable exceptions, European shares are heavy, and the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 is near three-week lows. 

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FX Daily, December 10: Brexit and US Stimulus are Unresolved as Attention Turns to the ECB

Overview:  US threats to break-up Facebook and the stalled stimulus talks spurred profit-taking in US shares yesterday and is dampening enthusiasm today.  The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell for the third time this week, and Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 600 is little changed. 

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FX Daily, December 9: Hope Burns Eternal

The market is hopeful today. The Johnson-von der Leyen dinner is seen as evidence that both sides see one more opportunity, and sterling is among the strongest currencies today. Hopes of a $900 bln+ fiscal stimulus package in the US helped stir animal spirits and lift US stocks to record highs yesterday.

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FX Daily, December 8: Consolidative Moment as Markets Wait for Fresh Developments

Overview:  Three brinkmanship dramas continue to play out.  The UK-EU trade talks have reportedly made little progress and may have even moved backward, according to some reports, over the past two days.  The EU and Poland, and Hungary will be butting heads at the leaders' summit that begins Thursday.  The US federal spending authorization is exhausted at the end of the week.

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FX Daily, December 7: Holy Mackerel Will UK-EU Talks Really Flounder?

Overview:  Optimists see the belabored talk between the UK and EU as providing for a dramatic climax of a deal, while the pessimists warn that the divergence is real.  Sterling opened three-quarters of a cent lower in early turnover and is now off around two cents. 

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FX Daily, December 4: The Employment Report may not Give Greenback much of a Reprieve

After wobbling late yesterday on what appears to be old news from Pfizer about a disruption of the vaccine's supply chain, equity markets have recovered, and risk appetites remain intact.   With more than 1% gains in South Korea's Kospi and Taiwan's Taiex, the MSCI Asia Pacific benchmark secured its fifth consecutive weekly gain. 

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FX Daily, December 03: Euro Rally Stalls while Brexit Concerns Trip Sterling

The selling pressure that drove the dollar lower yesterday has abated, and the greenback is paring yesterday's loss, though the dollar-bloc currencies are showing some resilience. EC negotiator Barnier briefed ministers that the same three issues that have bedeviled the trade talks with the UK remain unresolved (fisheries, level playing field, and a conflict resolution mechanism).

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FX Daily, December 2: Euro Rally Stalls while Brexit Concerns Trip Sterling

The selling pressure that drove the dollar lower yesterday has abated, and the greenback is paring yesterday's loss, though the dollar-bloc currencies are showing some resilience. EC negotiator Barnier briefed ministers that the same three issues that have bedeviled the trade talks with the UK remain unresolved (fisheries, level playing field, and a conflict resolution mechanism).

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FX Daily, December 1: No Follow-Through After Month-End Adjustments

The near-record rallies seen in the major equity markets in November may have contributed to the month-end drama yesterday. There has been no follow-through activity. Stocks bounced back, and the US dollar is heavy, with few exceptions.

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FX Daily, November 30: Equities are Heavy and the Dollar Softer to Start New Week

Overview: Month-end profit-taking saw Asia Pacific shares tumble earlier today.  Most markets are off 1-2.5% today after the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 2.25% last week.  European shares are mixed, but little changed.  US shares are also trading lower. 

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FX Daily, November 27: Dollar Offered Ahead of the Weekend

Equities are finishing the week on a firm tone, while the US dollar remains heavy.   In the Asia Pacific, only Australia and India did not end the week on a firm note.  The MSCI Asia Pacific completed its fourth consecutive weekly gain, for around a 13% gain. 

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FX Daily, November 25: Risk Appetites Stall Ahead of the US Thanksgiving Holiday

The global equity rally appears to be stalling after the US markets rallied strongly yesterday. Chinese, Taiwan, Korean, and Indian indices fell, and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index appears to have posted only its second loss this month. European shares are narrowly mixed, leaving the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 little changed.

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FX Daily, November 24: Diverging PMIs Fail to Give the Dollar Lasting Support

Overview: The contrast between the eurozone and US preliminary PMI readings caught the short-term market leaning the wrong way, and the dollar snapped back after extending its recent losses.  However, today the US dollar is back on its heels and returning to yesterday's lows against most major currencies.

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FX Daily, November 23: Markets Look Past Near-Term Challenges

Overview:  News that the AstraZeneca vaccine was 70% effective but could be enhanced by changing dosage is lifting spirits and boosting equities.  Japan's markets were closed for a national holiday, but all the equity markets in the region advanced and many by more than 1%. 

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FX Daily, November 20: US Treasury-Fed Dispute Spurs Handwringing but Immediate Market Impact was Exaggerated

Overview:  News that the stimulus talks between the House Democrats and Senate Republicans was the excuse traders were looking for to extend the US equity gains yesterday, but shortly after the close, confirmation that Treasury was not going to agree to extend several Fed facilities sent stocks reeling. 

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FX Daily, November 19: Surging Virus Saps Risk Appetites

Overview: News that the New York City was closing the schools to contain the virus sent stocks reeling in late North American dealings yesterday and spurred some profit-taking in the Asia Pacific and Europe.  Equities in the Asia Pacific region were mostly lower, though China, South Korea, and Australia's advanced and Tokyo markets were mixed.

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FX Daily, November 18: Balancing Pandemic Surge with Optimism about Vaccine

News that Tokyo will go to its highest alert as it faces a rising contagion snapped a 12-day rally in the Nikkei, but most bourses in the Asia Pacific region excluding Japan advanced, though Chinese equities were mixed. European equities are narrowly mixed as the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 continues to gyrate within Monday's range.

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FX Daily, November 17: Greenback Remains Under Pressure

Overview: Moderna's announcement did not spur nearly the magnitude of the disruption caused by Pfizer's similar announcement a week ago.  Still, in the US, the NASDAQ underperformed the other indices, and the US Dow Industrials saw record highs.

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