Trading
Pressure likely for the greenback
The improvement in February's US trade data is likely to be short-lived. Deutsche Bank's strategy team continues to look for EUR/USD to grind higher over the course of the quarter. Is the deterioration of the US basic balance still a valid reason to sell…
GFT signs to Dow Jones news and info
ADA, MICHIGAN – Online currency firm Global Forex Trading (GFT) has gone live with a customised selection of Dow Jones news and information via its proprietary online FX trading software, DealBook FX2.
CFTC finds trader liable for $32 million
WASHINGTON, DC – The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has granted a permanent injunction against Ronald Steven Holt and three associated companies for financial misdemeanours, while fining them a total of $32 million.
MAS maintains forex policy
SINGAPORE – The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) maintained its stance of 'modest and gradual' appreciation at its semi-annual policy review last Tuesday.
Currency managers down in March
LONDON – Most currency funds had a tough time generating positive returns last month, indicates research from ABN Amro.
Standard Chartered builds in sales
DUBAI & NEW YORK – Standard Chartered has boosted its global FX sales capabilities by making a senior appointment in the Middle East and a new addition in New York.
EBS sets new quarterly record
LONDON – Trading platform and technology provider, EBS set a new record for spot FX trading volumes on the EBS Spot system in the first quarter of this year.
ABN Amro restructure continues
LONDON – ABN Amro has continued restructuring its FX operations, making another senior management change.
JP Morgan hit by sales departures
NEW YORK & LONDON – JP Morgan's FX sales operation has been hit by a number of departures including a number of defections to Merrill Lynch.
CME breaks into China and Israel
BEIJING – China Foreign Exchange Trade System (Cfets), China's interbank FX market, last week signed a multi-year deal with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). Under the agreement, Chinese financial institutions and investors will gain access to…
A changing regime
Low-yielding currencies are set to make a comeback, writes Teis Knuthsen, head of FX and fixed-income research at Danske Bank in Copenhagen
Fund launch from Russell
DUBLIN – Russell Investment Group has launched a multi-manager currency fund to offer investors a way of diversifying their portfolios.
COESfx enhances online platform
PLAINVIEW, NEW YORK – Electronic communication network (ECN) COESfx has enhanced its platform by adding expanded trading features and a streaming news feed for its retail and institutional investors.
eSpeed offers wireless trading and market data
NEW YORK – Electronic trading system eSpeed has launched a wireless market data and trading solution for institutional trading of FX and US Treasury bond issues via the Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 platform.
Barclays set to start forex algo trading
LONDON – Barclays Capital is looking at ways to bring algorithmic trading to businesses within the futures, FX and fixed-income sectors, according to Amy Nauiokas, Barclays' former head of global e-commerce. Nauiokas has been promoted to head of Barclays…
Knight Capital completes HotspotFXi acquisition
JERSEY CITY, NJ – Knight Capital Group last week completed the acquisition of Hotspot FX in an all-cash deal for $77.5 million.
HSBC closes NY prop desk, reorgs management
LONDON – HSBC has closed its prop desk in New York and made a number of changes to its senior management line-up, following the promotion of Andrew Brown to global head of foreign exchange.
RBS realigns prime brokerage ge
LONDON – Michelle Wong, global head of prime brokerage at Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in London, is to leave following a realignment of its prime brokerage (PB) business.
Defrosting the myths
The risk of an Icelandic crisis and its impact on other high-yielding currencies has been strongly exaggerated, says Beat Siegenthaler, senior strategist at TD Securities in London
Reuters to calculate official spot rate
HONG KONG – Reuters is to be the official exclusive calculator and distributor of the benchmark spot US dollar/Hong Kong dollar fixing rate. This new official spot USD/HKD fixing is owned and administrated by Treasury Markets Association (TMA) in Hong…
No change is good news for forecasters
Investors Bank & Trust (IB&T) has moved into the top five of every forecast category, making it the most consistently accurate forecaster across the board so far in 2006.
JP Morgan hit by sales departures
NEW YORK & LONDON – JP Morgan's FX sales operation has been hit by a number of departures including a number of defections to Merrill Lynch.
China's forex reserves exceed Japan's
BEIJING – CHINA, with $853.7 billion in FX reserves, has surpassed Japan's long-held status as the world's largest holder of foreign exchange reserves, state media reported last week.
Retail growth needs responsible attitude
The rise in financials' use of foreign exchange over 2005, as demonstrated by Greenwich Associates research (see related article, this issue), shows just how important it is becoming as an asset class.