Opinion
US employment: Settling for less
The US August employment report came in better expected, removing some near-term risk of a double dip but still pointing to pervasive weakness, says Julia Coronado, senior US economist at BNP Paribas in New York
The risks of ongoing imbalances
Pete Luxton, global economic adviser at Informa Global markets in London, looks at the implications of the ongoing external imbalances
Bringing exchange values to OTC
The International Organisation of Securities Commissions (Iosco) published its principles for direct electronic access to markets last Friday (August 13). The guidelines don’t affect foreign exchange but raise some interesting points.
Clearers pile into Asia
The region seizing the opportunity to offer central clearing for over-the-counter products seems to be the Asia-Pacific, which explains LCH.Clearnet’s plans to aggressively push into that market.
What to watch in Asia
Albert Leung and Subodh Kumar, Asian strategists at Citi in Hong Kong and Singapore, say China's July macro data and the Shanghai Composite Index are the key indicators of Asia's performance
Gold points to repeat of summer 2008
Simon Derrick, chief foreign exchange strategist at Bank of New York Mellon in London, looks at where gold is heading and what this says about investor sentiment
2010 the year of the yen
Simon Smith, chief economist at retail trading company FxPro in London, says the yen will drive currency markets in the second half of the year
Power to the high-frequency traders
Speakers at the FX Week USA congress held in New York last Tuesday (July 13) were resoundingly supportive of the role high-frequency traders (HFT) have had in ensuring liquidity in the market.
FX central clearing: A work in progress
No-one’s the wiser about the implications of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act on forex options. And perhaps it won’t even matter by the time the legislation becomes fully scripted.
Gold should form an essential part of central banks’ liquidity portfolio
The credit crisis has highlighted that in times of turmoil, gold is one of the few assets that remains liquid, says Natalie Dempster, director of government affairs at the World Gold Council
Smarter trading: exposing the real (time) benefits
Lessons are still being learned from the financial crisis, and financial institutions today keep credit risk constantly in mind. Firms are trying to demonstrate best practices to their clients, but many are trading with out-of-date credit information,…
Super-competitive core won’t stop euro losses
The euro’s 'peripheral risk premium' has continued to rise through the bounce in EUR/USD. A super-competitive and rapidly recovering core won’t stop it rising further. Tighter policy in the core raises the deflationary benchmark for the periphery, adding…
Swings and roundabouts
Howard Friend, chief market strategist at MIG Bank, explains the ‘2F pattern’, a system he has developed to identify the characteristics of a trend and calculate where to enter a position in its direction
The challenge of re-setting precedents
As if there weren’t enough inconsistencies between regulators, the Bank for International Settlements' head of monetary and economic policy, Stephen Cecchetti, has said corporates should not be exempt from clearing over-the-counter derivatives through…
New rules for new markets
It’s all about the emerging markets managing their exposure to the eurozone. Last week, Hong Kong and Malaysia also moved to offer a common bond-settlement system.
On your marks...
One of the foreign exchange market mega-trends in 2010-2020 will be the use of the Swiss franc as a proxy for the old German mark, says Mansoor Mohi-uddin, global FX strategist at UBS in Singapore
The euro's new clothes
Nick Beecroft, senior markets consultant at Saxo Bank in London presents a gloomy prediction of the next phase in the 2007-2010 debt crisis
No margin for error
Are money market margins a new science or just an overhaul? By Carl Martin, group technology director at Eurobase Banking Solutions in London
Confusion over regulations continues
The new foreign exchange committee could not have come at a better time, with much confusion over the status of currency derivatives in Germany, following its government’s decision to backtrack on a proposed ban earlier last week.
Latin America: Looking beyond the correction
Morgan Stanley analysts believe there will be scope for a recovery in emerging market assets once the positioning becomes more balanced – primarily with respect to real-money investors, which will mean a bit of repricing
Out of crisis comes opportunity?
The past few weeks of rampant volatility have no doubt put the technology of a number dealers to the test. particularly interesting though are the strategic rumours circulating about an unlikely dealer.
Asia's currencies steady under pressure
Callum Henderson, global head of foreign exchange research at Standard Chartered in Singapore, says the Asia play is far from over, despite the recent pullback in the region’s currencies
Euro and sterling – love to loathe
Daragh Maher, foreign exchange strategist at Crédit Agricole in London, discusses the struggle of the euro and sterling in the face of recent political events, and asks which is winning the battle of the battered
China draws on Japan experience
The message was clear at the FX Week China congress in Beijing last Tuesday, China will move on its currency, but at it’s own pace.