Tag Archive: newsletter

FX Daily, June 12: Anxiety Ticks Up, Risks Pared

2019-06-12

by

2019-06-12

Overview: The S&P 500 snapped a five-day advance yesterday and set the heavier tone for equities today.  Continued protests in Hong Kong were not shrugged off as they have been in the last couple of sessions.  The Hang Seng's nearly 1.9% decline was the largest in a month and led the region lower. 

Read More »

What Would It Take to Spark a Rural/Small-Town Revival?

2019-06-12

by

2019-06-12

Merchandise Exports 2015
Recent research supports the idea that this under-the-radar migration is already under way. The decline of rural regions and small towns is a global phenomenon, and the causes are many but boil down to two primary dynamics: 1. Cities and megalopolises (aggregations of cities, suburbs and exurbs) attract capital, infrastructure, markets and talent, and these are the engines of job creation.

Read More »

Switzerland has best winter for 11 years

2019-06-12

by

2019-06-12

The Swiss Hotel Association recorded a 0.7% increase in overnight stays during the 2018/2019 winter season. From November to April, 16.7 million overnight stays were recorded in Switzerland, 8.8 million by foreign visitors and 7.9 million by Swiss travelers.

Read More »

FX Daily, June 11: Markets Take Another Small Step Away from the Edge

2019-06-11

by

2019-06-11

Overview: The recovery in equities continues today in light news day.  Nearly all the bourses in the Asia Pacific region rose, led by a 2.6% gain of the Shanghai Composite. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose for a third session. European equity benchmarks are rising for the sixth time in the past seven sessions.

Read More »

How dovish can Swiss monetary policy go?

2019-06-11

by

2019-06-11

ECB's Deposit Rate and SNB's Interest Rate on Sight Deposits
The Swiss National Bank finds itself having to deal with an uncertain growth and inflation outlook as well as persistent external risks, but it is unlikely to pre-empt the ECB on interest rates.At its meeting on 13 June, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) will face an uncertain growth and inflation outlook. Economic data have been mixed and, more importantly, external risks (intensification of trade disputes, Brexit, Italian budget disagreements…) have...

Read More »

Oil prices are reeling

2019-06-11

by

2019-06-11

Oil Prices, 2018-2019
The escalation in trade tensions, the dimming of global growth prospects and a surge in US export capacity have pushed us to lower our oil forecasts.The recent plunge in prices suggests that oil is acting like a leading indicator of global economic growth, reflecting investors’ concerns that lasting trade disputes will dent future growth and risk pushing the world economy into recession.

Read More »

Gold To Reach 6 Year High Over $1,400 on Uncertain Outlook for Global Markets

2019-06-11

by

2019-06-11

Gold Markets, 2009-2019
Gold is finally gaining the traction needed to boost prices to a level not seen since 2013 as concern mounts over increased trade war tensions and the global growth outlook. Bullion may touch $1,400 an ounce this year as investors hedge risk, according to Rhona O’Connell, head of market analysis for EMEA and Asia regions at INTL FCStone Inc.

Read More »

Irredeemable Currency Is a Roach Motel, Report 9 June

2019-06-10

by

2019-06-10

In what has become a four-part series, we are looking at the monetary science of China’s potential strategy to nuke the Treasury bond market. In Part I, we gave a list of reasons why selling dollars would hurt China. In Part II we showed that interest rates, being that the dollar is irredeemable, are not subject to bond vigilantes.

Read More »

FX Daily, June 10: Collective Sigh of Relief Lifts Equities, Yields, and the Dollar

2019-06-10

by

2019-06-10

Overview: A global sigh of relief that the US will not tariff all its imports from Mexico.  Equities are all higher, and the weekend demonstrations in Hong Kong over a bill allowing extraditions to the mainland for the first time did not deter investors from bidding up the Hang Seng over 2.3%, the most this year.  European equities are following suit. 

Read More »

FX Weekly Preview: US Policy Mix Flips and Will Take the Dollar with It

2019-06-10

by

2019-06-10

There is a new game, afoot. For the last couple of years, it has been about normalizing policy. Even the Bank of Japan, which has never declared it was tapering, has gradually reduced the amount of government bonds it purchases. Countries like the US, or Canada in 2017, who could raise interest rates were rewarded with stronger currencies.

Read More »

All Of US Trade, Both Ways, And Much, Much More Than The Past Few Months

2019-06-10

by

2019-06-10

US Imports of Goods from China, NSA 1989-2019
The media quickly picked up on Jay Powell’s comments this week from Chicago. Much less talked about was why he was in that particular city. The Federal Reserve has been conducting what it claims is an exhaustive review of its monetary policies. Officials have been very quick to say they aren’t unhappy with them, no, no, no, they’re unhappy with the pitiful state of the world in which they have to be applied.

Read More »

Janus Powell

2019-06-09

by

2019-06-09

US Treasury Real Yields, 2007-2019
Again, who’s following who? As US Treasury yields drop and eurodollar futures prices rise, signaling expectations for lower money rates in the near future, Federal Reserve officials are catching up to them. It was these markets which first took further rate hikes off the table before there ever was a Fed “pause.”

Read More »

Monthly Macro Monitor – June 2019 (VIDEO)

2019-06-08

by

2019-06-08

Alhambra Investments CEO reviews economic charts from the past month and his opinion of what they mean.

Read More »

Swiss government decides not to act on roaming charges

2019-06-08

by

2019-06-08

The National Council, Switzerland’s parliament, rejected a motion to force Swiss mobile phone operators to remove EU roaming charges. 99 voted against, 78 for and 14 abstained, according to the newspaper 20 Minutes. In 2017, the European Union (EU) forced EU operators to stop charging their customers extra for calls made outside their home country but within the EU.

Read More »

A Surprise Move in Gold

2019-06-08

by

2019-06-08

Gold, 30-year seasonal chart
Traders and Analysts Caught Wrong-Footed. Over the past week gold and gold stocks have been on a tear. It is probably fair to say that most market participants were surprised by this development. Although sentiment on gold was not extremely bearish and several observers expected a bounce, to our knowledge no-one expected this.

Read More »

FX Daily, June 7: Jobs Data and Tariffs Dominate

2019-06-07

by

2019-06-07

Overview:  Global equities continue to recover from the recent slide.  Chinese and Hong Kong markets were on holiday today, but the MSCI Asia Pacific Index eked out a minor gain and ensured that its four-week slide ended.  Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 600 is up about 0.7% through the European morning. 

Read More »

Is the Tech Bubble Bursting?

2019-06-07

by

2019-06-07

Acceleration of Technological Adoption Curves 1867-2017
There are two other trends that don't attract quite the media attention that soaring profits do. Is the decade-long tech bubble finally popping? Tech bulls are overlooking the fundamental reality that the drivers of Big tech's phenomenal growth--financialization and expansion into mobile telephony-- are both losing momentum.

Read More »

Swiss regulator fines banks over improper forex trading

2019-06-07

by

2019-06-07

The Swiss Competition Commission (COMCO) has fined five international banks for their involvement in the formation of cartels that manipulated the foreign exchange market. COMCO fined Barclays, Citigroup, JPMorgan, the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and the MUFG Bank a total of CHF90 million ($90.6 million) for “anti-competitive arrangements between banks in foreign exchange spot trading”.

Read More »

Gold Hits 10 Week High At $1,328/oz as Trade Wars Spur Safe Haven Demand

2019-06-07

by

2019-06-07

Gold in USD – 1 week (GoldCore.com)
Gold has consolidated on yesterday’s gains and is marginally higher as risk aversion creeps back into markets. Gold rose 1.5% yesterday to its highest level in more than three months. Concerns that trade wars look set to escalate globally and fears that President Trump’s threat of tariffs on Mexico will hurt the global economy are spurring safe haven demand.

Read More »

FX Daily, June 6: US Tariff Threats on Mexico Compete with ECB for Attention

2019-06-06

by

2019-06-06

Overview: The implications of President Trump's assessment that there has not been "nearly enough" progress in negotiations with Mexico that would avert the tariff on June 10 competing for investors' attention, which had been squarely today's ECB meeting. Minutes before Trump spoke Fitch cut its sovereign rating for Mexico to BBB from BBB+, while Moody's cut its outlook to negative from stable.

Read More »