Weekly Market Update
The Thanksgiving holiday in the US usually makes for quiet markets and a lack of volatility, and last week was no exception. The main market movers were the PMIs of business activity in the Eurozone and the UK, the former remained weak, while the latter was stronger than expected and moved back into expansionary territory. […]
Weekly Market Update
The Federal Reserve received yet another positive surprise from the October US inflation report. Inflation surprised again to the downside, and financial markets celebrated the likely end of rate hikes by sending stocks and bonds soaring worldwide. The resulting fall in US rates, and the flight away from safe-havens and into risk assets, slammed the […]
Weekly Market Update
Financial markets were becoming increasingly comfortable with the idea that the worldwide hiking cycle was over and were beginning to look forward to rate cuts, until Fed chair Powell sounded less convinced at a speech last week. In response, bond rates increased again and currencies partially reversed recent moves, as the dollar rallied against almost […]
Weekly Market Update
Bonds and stocks rallied in tandem worldwide last week on relief at the Federal Reserve’s caution regarding future rate increases, and a general sense that the fastest hiking cycle in history is now over. A soft nonfarm payrolls report out of the US on Friday added fuel to these hopes, and nearly every major currency […]
Weekly Market Update
The US dollar traded in a fairly tight range against most of its peers last week, ending slightly lower against most European currencies, save the pound. The moves were all modest, although it is remarkable that yet another week of rising long-term rates in the US failed again to boost the greenback significantly. This suggests […]
Weekly Market Update
The crisis in the Middle East is for now having a muted impact on major currency trading, which continues to be driven primarily by inflation numbers and central bank communications and decisions. The September inflation report out of the US showed signs that the downward trend is stalling, and US rates rebounded, dragging the dollar […]
Weekly Market Update
The biggest story in financial markets remains the relentless march higher in long-term interest rates worldwide, led by US Treasuries. Last week, however, rates failed to drag the dollar upward with them, and the US currency lost ground against most currencies, despite Friday’s impressive nonfarm payrolls data. The main exceptions were commodity currencies, which suffered […]
Weekly Market Update
The trend towards higher rates and a higher US dollar did not abate last week. However, unambiguously positive inflation data out of the US and the Eurozone did partially reverse the moves on Friday and gave hope that we are near the top in rates and the bottom in European currencies. Commodities also reversed their […]
Weekly Market Update
Hawkish Fed communications, which suggested that the FOMC could hike further and is in no hurry to cut rates, sent interest rates worldwide higher yet again. The key US 10-year Treasury rate led the way, breaking to fresh multi-decade highs. Risk assets worldwide tumbled, stocks and commodities fell, and credit spreads widened. The impact on […]
Weekly Market Update
The US economy continues to defy the global downturn, and the dollar is reaping the benefits. Dismal July data from German factories and more jitters about the Chinese downturn slammed equities worldwide, but US Treasury yields marched higher anyway. Not surprisingly, the dollar benefited from these worries, particularly since the US economy is so far […]
