Category Archive: 4) FX Trends

Main Author Marc Chandler
Marc Chandler
He has been covering the global capital markets in one fashion or another for more than 30 years, working at economic consulting firms and global investment banks. After 14 years as the global head of currency strategy for Brown Brothers Harriman, Chandler joined Bannockburn Global Forex, as a managing partner and chief markets strategist as of October 1, 2018.
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Weekly Speculative Position: More EUR Shorts, Less CHF Shorts .. Again

2017-02-27

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2017-02-27

Speculative Positions Commitments of traders Swiss Franc 27 Feb
Speculators increased their EUR net short position against the dollar, but lowered their CHF net shorts (vs. USD). This tendency confirms our view that EUR/CHF will move towards parity.

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FX Weekly Preview: Macroeconomics and Psychology

2017-02-27

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2017-02-27

There is a broad consensus around the macroeconomic picture. The headwinds slowing the US economy in H1 16 have eased, and above trend growth in H2 16 appears to be carrying into 2017. Q4 16 GDP is expected to be revised to 2.1% up from 1.8%. Many economists appear to accept that a good part, though not all, of the decline in the estimated trend growth in the US, is a function of demographic considerations.

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FX Weekly Review, February 20 – 25: Ranges in FX: Respect the Price Action

2017-02-26

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2017-02-26

Trade-weighted index Swiss Franc, February 25
It is difficult right now to talk about the foreign exchange market using the dollar as the numeraire. The dollar was stronger against most of the major currencies last week, but not the yen or sterling. The Dollar Index itself was little changed, rising less than 0.15%.

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FX Daily, February 24: Anxiety? What Anxiety?

2017-02-24

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2017-02-24

The US dollar is finishing the week on a mixed note in choppy activity in narrow ranges. It is an apt way to finish this week, which has been largely directionless as investors wait for fresh incentives, and are especially looking toward Trump's speech to a joint session of Congress next week.

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FX Daily, February 23: Dollar Chops About, as “Fairly Soon” Does not Mean mid-March

2017-02-23

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2017-02-23

FX Performance February 23 2017 Movers and Shakers
The US dollar is confined to narrow ranges today within yesterday's ranges. Equity markets posted small gains in Asia and have an upside bias in Europe. Core bond yields are softer, and today this includes France, but peripheral European 10-year benchmark yields are 3-6 bp firmer. Italian bonds are the poorest performer, while the 10-year Dutch bond yields are off the most (3.2 bp to 0.56%) despite the looming election.

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Primary Budget Balances in EMU

2017-02-23

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2017-02-23

Greece debt has rallied as a repeat of the 2015 crisis seems less likely. The EC may turn its attention to Italy's structural deficit. There are several countries, including France that is forecast to have a larger primary deficit in 2018 than 2017.

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FX Daily, February 22: Euro Meltdown Continues

2017-02-22

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2017-02-22

FX Performance February 22 2017 Movers and Shakers
February has been cruel to the euro. Of the sixteen sessions this month, counting today, the euro has risen in four, and two of those were last week. Its new four-day slide pushed it below $1.05 for the first time in six weeks as European markets were opening. The $1.0560 area that was broken yesterday, and provided a cap today is 61.8% retracement objective of last month's rally.

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FX Daily, February 21: Dollar Bounces Back

2017-02-21

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2017-02-21

FX Performance February 21 2017 Movers and Shakers
Some profit-taking in the middle of last week pushed the dollar lower and gave rise in some quarters that the run was over. However, the greenback has come back the bid. It is gaining against all the major currencies today and most of the emerging market currencies.

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Dollar Index: The Chart Everyone is Talking About

2017-02-21

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2017-02-21

Many are discussing a possible head-and-shoulders pattern in the Dollar Index. We are skeptical as other technical signals do not confirm. We recognize scope for disappointment over the border tax and the next batch of employment data, but European politics is the present driver and may not be alleviated soon.

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Great Graphic: US and Japan Five-Year Credit Default Swaps

2017-02-21

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2017-02-21

Japan and US 5-year credit default swap (CDS)
For the first time since the financial crisis, the 5-year CDS on JGBs is dipping below the 5-year US CDS. It appears to be more a function of a decline in Japan's CDS than a rise in the US CDS. We are reluctant to read too much into the small price changes in the mostly illiquid instruments.

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FX Daily, February 20: Marking Time on Monday

2017-02-20

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2017-02-20

FX Performance February 20 2017 Movers and Shakers
US markets are closed for the Presidents' Day holiday, but it hasn't prevented its pre-weekend gains giving a bullish tone to global equities. The S&P 500 and NASDAQ recovered from early weakness to close at new record levels before the weekend. Global equity markets are following suit today.

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Weekly Speculative Position: Rising EUR shorts and falling CHF shorts point to weaker EUR/CHF

2017-02-20

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2017-02-20

Speculative Positions Commitments of traders Swiss Franc - 20.02
Speculators increased their EUR net short position against the dollar, but lowered their CHF net shorts (vs. USD). This tendency confirms our view that EUR/CHF will move towards parity.

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FX Weekly Preview: Number One Rule of the Game is Stay in the Game

2017-02-20

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2017-02-20

Light economic calendar in the week ahead, but anticipation of US tax reform may underpin dollar and equities. European politics are in flux (France, Italy, Greece) and this may see spreads widen over Germany. Russia's outlook was upgraded by Moody's before the weekend, and China has announced no coal imports this year from North Korea. Brazil is expected to cut Selic by 75 bps.

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Up and down markets, what they imply and how to best trade them

2017-02-19

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Trading up and down forex markets can be one of the more difficult kind to trade. Traders tend to want to know the story line that tells them which way to trade, but in reality there may be multiple stories that are equally as believable. That creates the potential to get traders out of sync … Continue...

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FX Weekly Review, February 13 – 18: Why still long the dollar?

2017-02-19

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2017-02-19

Swiss Franc Index Trade-weighted index Swiss Franc
Arguments for being long the dollar: FX investors because of the difference in monetary policy (e.g. higher US rates), Bond investors long US Bonds because higher bond yields, On the other side, European and Swiss equities are not so much overvalued as U.S. stocks are.

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The Consensus Narrative does not Appreciate the Resilience of the System

2017-02-18

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2017-02-18

resilience
The system of checks and balances is working. Populism-nationalism is not sweeping across the world. Even in US and UK, populist agenda was appropriated by the main-center right party. The attack on the body politics is activating the immune system in ways that the consensus narrative does not recognize.

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FX Daily, February 16: Corrective Forces Emerge, Tempering the Dollar’s Rally

2017-02-16

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2017-02-16

FX Performance, February 16 2017 Movers and Shakers
The Dollar Index had moved higher for ten consecutive sessions before reversing yesterday's gains to close lower. Yesterday and today's losses have seen the Dollar Index retrace 38.2% of the advance since February 2. That retracement objective was near 100.80. The 50% retracement is found near 100.50 and the 61.8% retracement by 100.20.

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FX Daily, February 15: Yellen Helps the Dollar Extend Streak

2017-02-15

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2017-02-15

The Dollar Index's ten-day rally was at risk yesterday, but Yellen's reiteration of the commitment to continue to lift rates gradually helped extend the streak to eleven sessions.This surpassed the streak around the election (November 7-November 18). With today's gains, it may draw closer to what appears to be the long streak, 14 sessions between April 30, 2012 and May 17.

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Lies, Damn Lies, and Taxes

2017-02-15

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2017-02-15

taxes
President Trump hinted at the end of last week that the Administration's tax proposals would be aired in the next two or three weeks. This seems to be a signal of its inclusion in his address to both houses of Congress on February 28. This is not quite a State of the Union speech, but similar and precisely what Obama did in February 2009.

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