Tag Archive: Eurozone Manufacturing PMI

The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) measures the activity level of purchasing managers in the manufacturing sector. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector; below 50 indicates contraction. Traders watch these surveys closely as purchasing managers usually have early access to data about their company’s performance, which can be a leading indicator of overall economic performance.

FX Daily, June 03: US Penchant for Tariffs Keeps Investors on Edge

2019-06-03

by

2019-06-03

Overview:  The weekend failed to break the grip of investor worries that is driving stocks and yields lower.  The US Administration's penchant for tariffs is not simply aimed at China, where there is some sympathy, but the move against Mexico, dropping special privileges for India, and apparently, had considered tariffs on Australia.  At the same time, the threat of 25% tariff on auto imports.

Read More »

FX Daily, May 23: Trade, Brexit, and Disappointing Flash PMIs Weigh on Global Markets

2019-05-23

by

2019-05-23

Overview:  The deterioration of the investment climate is spurring the sales of stocks and the buying of bonds. The dollar is firm.  China and the US appear to be digging as if the trade tensions will remain for some time and the breech is beginning to look too big for Trump and Xi to pull another rabbit out of the hat like they did at the end of last year when the tariff truce was struck.   The move against Huawei and possible a number of...

Read More »

FX Daily, May 02: Dollar Consolidates Fed-Inspired Recovery

2019-05-02

by

2019-05-02

Overview:  The US dollar is consolidating yesterday's post-Fed rally, and this is giving it a slightly heavier tone today.   Equities are mostly lower and Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 600 is off about 0.5% in late morning turnover, which if sustained would be the largest decline in three weeks.  The S&P 500 posted a potential key reversal yesterday by setting new record highs and then closing below the previous session's low.

Read More »

FX Daily, April 18: EMU Disappointment Lifts the Dollar

2019-04-18

by

2019-04-18

Overview: A bout of profit-taking in equities began in the US yesterday and has carried through Asia and Europe today. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell for the first time in five days, while the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 is snapping a six-day advance.  The Nikkei gapped higher to start the week and a gap low tomorrow would undermine the technical outlook.

Read More »

FX Daily, February 21: Aussie Slammed by Dalian Coal Embargo, While Firmer Flash PMI does Euro Little Good

2019-02-21

by

2019-02-21

Overview: The US dollar is firm against most major and emerging market currencies. There is more optimism on US-Chinese trade as a series of understandings are drafted, and an extension past March 1 of the tariff freeze is reportedly in the works.

Read More »

FX Daily, July 02: Third Quarter Begins With a Thump

2018-07-02

by

2018-07-02

The window dressing ahead of the end of Q2 failed to signal a turn in sentiment. Equity markets have taken back those gains and more. The US dollar is broadly firmer, though it was coming off its best levels near midday in Europe, and the three-basis-point slippage puts the US 10-year yield at 2.83%, its lowest in more than a month.

Read More »

FX Daily, June 01: Ironic Twists to End the Tumultuous Week

2018-06-01

by

2018-06-01

The week is ending quite a bit different than it began. The main banking concern is not in Italy but in German, where shares in Deutsche Bank shares fell to a record low yesterday, and S&P Global cut its credit rating one step to BBB+ (third-lowest investment grade).

Read More »

FX Daily, May 23: Dollar and Yen Surge, European Data Disappoints

2018-05-23

by

2018-05-23

The US dollar has extended its gains against most of the major currencies. Momentum, positioning, and divergence continue to drive it. The euro briefly traded a little below $1.17, an important technical area and has enjoyed a bounce in late morning turnover in Europe.

Read More »

FX Daily, May 02: Confident Fed Key to New Found Respect for the Dollar

2018-05-02

by

2018-05-02

There is a brief respite in the powerful short squeeze that has fueled the dollar's dramatic recovery. The greenback which was nearly friendless a month ago now has many suitors. It is higher on the year against all the major currencies but the yen (~2.6%), the Norwegian krone (~1.6%) and sterling ~0.9%). It is virtually flat against the euro.

Read More »

FX Daily, April 23: Rising Rates Help Extend Dollar Gains

2018-04-23

by

2018-04-23

The new week has begun much like last week ended, with rising rates helping to extend the dollar's recent gains. The US 10-year yield is flirting with the 3.0% threshold. The two-year yield is firmer, and, like in the second half of last week, the US curve is becoming a little less flat. The market, as we had anticipated, was not so impressed with North Korea's measures, and Korea's Kospi edged lowed, and the region-leading KOSDAQ fell a little...

Read More »

FX Daily, April 03: Markets in Search of Footing

2018-04-03

by

2018-04-03

The sell-off in US tech shares dragged the market lower. The S&P 500 fell for the sixth session of the past eight and closed below the 200-day moving average for the first time in a couple of years. The sell-off in Asia and Europe is more muted. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped less than 0.1%. The Hang Seng, an index of H-shares, and Korea's KOSDAQ managed post gains.

Read More »

FX Daily, March 01: USD Snaps 3-Month Slide, Firm Ahead of Powell Part II

2018-03-01

by

2018-03-01

The US dollar rebounded last September and October before the downtrend resumed in November, and lasted through January. The dollar gained broadly last month, except against the yen, which rose almost 2.4% in February. This pattern is evident today, the first trading day of March. The dollar is extending its gains against most currencies but is only managing to consolidate in a narrow range against the yen.

Read More »

FX Daily, February 21: Markets Mark Time

2018-02-21

by

2018-02-21

The economic data stream is picking up, but there is an uneasy calm in the markets. It is almost as if the dramatic drop in stocks has left many with a sense of incompleteness, like waiting for another shoe to drop. The price action has not clarified the situation very much. The equity markets are stalling in front of important chart points as are yields and the dollar.

Read More »

FX Daily, February 01: Fed’s Hawkish Hold Keeps Dollar Consolidation Intact

2018-02-01

by

2018-02-01

The Yellen Fed ended on a high note. She took over the reins the of Federal Reserve an implemented a strategic normalization process monetary policy, and helped engineer not only the first post-crisis rate hikes but also the beginning of unwinding its balance sheet. Most reckon she has done an admirable job at the Federal Reserve, not only in terms of the economic performance on her watch but also the nimble execution policy.

Read More »

FX Daily, January 24: Dollar Takes Another Leg Lower

2018-01-24

by

2018-01-24

North American session sold into the dollar's upticks and Asia followed suit, taking the greenback to new multi-year lows against the euro and sterling while pushing it below the JPY110 level for the first time since last September. US trade action has become latest element of the narrative the seeks to explain the dollar's slide and the decoupling of the greenback from interest rates.

Read More »

FX Daily, January 2: Dollar Slump Accelerates

2018-01-02

by

2018-01-02

The US dollar's slump seen in the final two weeks of 2017 is carried into today's activity. The greenback's sell-off extends to the emerging market currencies as well. The Hungarian forint is the strongest rising nearly 1%, ostensibly helped by the euro approaching last year's high. However, our sense that fumes and momentum more than fresh news is pushing the dollar down is illustrated by the Korean won. It has gained nearly 0.9% today even though...

Read More »

FX Daily, December 14: US Rates Bounce Back, but Dollar, Hardly

2017-12-14

by

2017-12-14

US interest rates have recovered the drop seen after the FOMC yesterday, but the dollar at best has been able to consolidate its losses and at worst, seen its losses extended. The Fed boosted its growth forecasts and lower unemployment forecasts. Yet its interest rate trajectory and inflation forecasts were largely unchanged. Yellen, as her recent predecessors have done, played down the implications of the flattening of the yield curve.

Read More »

FX Daily, December 01: Dollar Consolidates Weekly Gain, while Equities Ease to Start New Month

2017-12-01

by

2017-12-01

The release of the manufacturing PMIs confirm that the synchronized global expansion remains intact. The focus today is on three unresolved political challenges: US tax reform, the UK-Irish border and the talks that may produce another grand coalition in Germany. The US dollar is mixed, with the dollar-bloc currencies and Scandis pushing higher.

Read More »

FX Daily, November 02: Dollar Pulls Back in Asia

2017-11-02

by

2017-11-02

We suggested the market was at crossroads. It is still not clear if the dollar's breakout, supported by higher yields is real or simply the fraying of ranges. Asia has pushed the dollar broadly lower. While the greenback finished the North American session above JPY114.00 for the first time since July, the fact that the US 10-year yield could not push back above the 2.40% level, does not help confidence.

Read More »