Trading
Election jitters
A tight presidential race could spell trouble ahead for the US dollar, says Peter Luxton (right) global markets adviser at Informa Global Markets in London
CME and Reuters pool liquidity
LONDON – Trading systems vendor Reuters and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange are bringing together their pools of buy-side and sell-side liquidity in what may be the first move towards an exchange model for the FX market.
Yen vol boosts BTM revenues
TOKYO – Yen volatility has boosted Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi’s (BTM) FX revenues, it said last week, as client demand for currency options soared in fiscal 2003.
EBS opens up prime broker service
LONDON – Spot broker EBS has opened EBS Prime, its FX prime brokerage service, to more banks, following a 20-week pilot programme with prime brokers Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan Chase and The Royal Bank of Scotland, along with 16 pilot customers.
Raising the standard for London
ACI’s European Congress in London this week has been two years in preparation. Robin Poynder, chairman of the organising committee, describes the agonies and ecstasies of staging the forex industry event in the UK capital
Dealers dismiss UK euro entry
LONDON – More than a quarter of forex dealers interviewed for an exclusive poll for FX Week think sterling will never become part of the single European currency. Another 10% believe the UK’s entry into the euro is at least another 10 years away – with…
Terrorism threatens Turkish lira
Turkey’s proximity to the worsening situation in Iraq is prompting an outflow of capital and sending the lira spiralling downwards, says Neil Mellor, FX strategist at Bank of New York in London
The one-year physically settled average rate forward
Capping and flooring a daily cable fixing rate offers a UK corporate with US dollar receivables an attractive risk/reward profile for zero premium, says Selene Chong, of HSBC’s FX structuring team in London
Rocketing oil price dominates currencies
LONDON – The rocketing price of crude oil is continuing to dominate the currency markets, propping up the currencies of oil producers while hitting oil consumers hard.
ACI European Congress: exhibition preview
Delegates at the seventh ACI European Congress this week will have plenty to keep them busy, as vendors and banks line up a vast array of product demonstrations and promotions.
Congress rise slows Indian rupee ascent
MUMBAI – The success of the Congress Party in the recent Indian elections sent tremors through the FX market last week, and may have a longer-term negative impact on the world’s largest emerging currency market.
China to stick with peg
While Chinese officials have hinted a yuan peg change may be imminent, Adrian Foster, FX strategist at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein in Singapore sees change unlikely in 2004
BIS reports FX options surge
BASEL – FX options business increased by a massive 77% year-on-year in the second half of last year, according to Bank for International Settlements (BIS) statistics released last week.
Banks compete for e-FX talent
LONDON – Dealers combining technological and sales expertise are in short supply as banks compete to secure staff that can aid their success in the growing online FX market.
Solving investment problems with forex
An asset manager may look to euro/Swiss franc and euro/sterling structures to take advantage of investor uncertainty, says David Durrant, chief currency strategist at Julius Baer Asset Management International in New York
Data sets tone for firmer dollar
NEW YORK – Much stronger than expected economic data from the US last Friday has set the tone for a firmer US dollar this week – potentially putting an end to the nervousness that has kept some clients out of the market in recent days.
Commodities drive client FX
LONDON – Banks are reporting growing business from clients needing structured FX and commodities solutions. The growth of commodity trading adviser (CTA), private banking, hedging and investor interest in FX is helping to boost demand, said bankers in…
What is oil telling us?
The high cost of oil in the US may hit the dollar hard in Q4, says John Taylor, chief investment officer at overlay manager FX Concepts in New York
ERM smooth says HKMA
HONG KONG – Hong Kong’s linked exchange rate mechanism worked "smoothly" last year, although the Hong Kong dollar strengthened "markedly" in Q4, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) said last week.
Political upheaval nears the endgame
The next two to six weeks in Poland will be very important for the medium-term outlook of the Polish zloty and indeed the entire country, says Daniel Katzive, FX strategist at UBS in New York
An average rate option to protect the budget
As euro/dollar continues its descent, Rabobank’s corporate sales desk in Utrecht suggests one way for European corporates to profit from the move
Kemp takes FX helm at Merrill
NEW YORK – Morgan Stanley FX chief Stephen Kemp is set to take on the continued build-up of Merrill Lynch’s forex business, following the resignation of co-head of global FX and rates Michael DeSa.
Volatility helps Reuters return to growth
LONDON – Renewed marketing efforts and continued volatility in the FX market led to a return to growth for Reuters’ dealing business in the first quarter despite fierce competition from EBS and Bloomberg, it said last week.
China hints strongly at yuan peg change
BEIJING – China last week gave its strongest hint yet that the yuan’s peg to the US dollar could be altered sooner rather than later.