Taiwan Story Will Only Be a Temporary Market Determinant

Markets The initial core bond yield jump quickly faded once again. Intraday advances of as much as 7 bps (in Germany) evaporated as the day evolved on a combination of factors. News of the first overseas grain shipment from a Ukraine port since the Russian invasion weighed on price of a range of (soft) commodities. […]

Australian Dollar Sinks after RBA Hike

The Australian dollar has declined sharply and is back below the symbolic 0.7000 level. AUD/USD is trading at 0.6931, down 1.35% on the day. RBA raises rates by 50bp The Reserve Bank of Australia raised interest rates by 50bp today. This is becoming somewhat of a routine, as today’s move was the third consecutive hike […]

RBA Board Raises Cash Rate by 50 Basis Points – Expect Another 50 in September

The Reserve Bank Board today lifted the cash rate by a further 50 basis points. The Bank has increased its inflation forecasts and lowered its growth forecasts. A significant theme is around the current momentum in the economy. That clearly points to another 50 basis points in September after which the Board can slow the […]

Bitcoin Retreats from Upper Boundary of Uptrend Channel

Bitcoin has lost 2.1% in the past 24 hours, pulling back to $22.9K. Ethereum has fallen 6.5% over the same period, to $1580. Top altcoins fell from 2.7% (XRP) to 12% (Polkadot). Total cryptocurrency market capitalization, according to CoinMarketCap, fell 3.7% to $1.05 trillion during the day. The cryptocurrency Fear and Greed Index fell further […]

How Concerned Should Traders Be Over Pelosi's Visit to Taiwan?

So far this week, safe-haven flows have been the theme of the markets. The yen strengthened substantially, and the Nikkei fell. US stocks were down on the first day of trading. Of course there are other factors affecting market sentiment, but it’s evident that geopolitics is playing its hand as well. Currencies could be extra […]

Australian CPI Expected to Rise

The Australian dollar has edged lower today. AUD/USD is trading at 0.6937, down 0.15% on the day. Markets brace for higher CPI Australia releases second-quarter CPI on Wednesday, with the markets expecting a sharp acceleration in inflation,  which could wake up the sleepy Australian dollar. Headline inflation is expected to jump to 6.2% YoY, up […]

Euro Slides on Nordstrom Squeeze

The euro has taken a nasty tumble today. In the North American session, EUR/USD is trading at 1.0144, down 0.76%. Nord Stream 1 cut to 20% capacity The energy crisis surrounding Nord Stream 1, a key channel for Russian gas exports to Europe continues to simmer. Perhaps the pipeline should be referred to as ‘Nord […]

Sunset Market Commentary

Markets Recession fears continue to haunt European markets. The EMU PMI last week falling below the 50 boom-or-bust level and yesterday’s poor German IFO flagged a sharp deceleration of activity going into H2. Russia reducing gas supply a few days after restarting deliveries via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline only highlights the risk for a […]

Gold Outlook: Precious Traders Await Fed Decision

Turmoil ensues in the global financial scene with rampant inflation, amplified recession fears and wide-reaching geopolitical risks, have investors scramble to reassess the future prospects of the shiny metal. Not only that, but the declaration of monkeypox as a global health emergency from WHO, stirred the waters even more and raised the inevitable question of […]

US NatGas Price Strives to Rewrite 2008 Highs Above $13.5

The gas story is in no hurry to leave the news headlines, and prices for the energy sector are behaving accordingly. In Tuesday’s trading in Europe, prices returned to the psychologically crucial round level of $2,000 per 1,000 cubic metres – around the December peak and the highest since mid-March. Gas on the trading floor […]