European markets have opened up with big falls after a post-Fed reversal last night on US stock markets.

The US FOMC signalled that it was not quite ready to end its monetary stimulus activities for fear of harming the fragile economic recovery.

This cautious stance caused investors once again seek the safety of fixed income with an opposing move away from commodities such as oil. Crude oil suffered a huge one day fall, dropping to below $69 for the first time this month.

Yen Remains Strong as Traders Seek Perceived Safety

There was some volatile action on the forex markets in the immediate period following the Fed release statement.

With question marks over the strength of the economic recovery, investors flocked to the perceived safety of the Dollar and Yen. This morning the Dollar flight is unwinding somewhat, while the Yen continues its strong week.

The Yen is up by 1% against the Dollar and up 1.25% against the Pound. GBP/JPY is the biggest faller today at ¥147.44, the next support looks like it could be at ¥147.16 then ¥146.78.

The state of the UK economy continues to look comparatively worse than many of its G20 partners and these level look like they could be hit sooner rather than later.

Fixed Odds One Touch trades set over the next few days for these levels could be a way of playing this.

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There were solid, if unspectacular gains for US markets last night with the Dow Jones closing up by 0.5%.

This morning, European markets have opened slightly higher with the FTSE 100 the standout performer with gains of 0.4% in early trading. Commodities are holding up reasonably well across the spectrum, although oil has dipped by around 0.5% to $71.40.

There is a wide range of economic announcements today with a number of European Manufacturing and services reports due.

At 09.30 BST we have the release of the minutes from the last MPC meeting. No real surprises are expected in the voting patterns on rates, but there could be some interesting views on quantitative easing.

There should be a similar focus with the FOMC statement at 19.15 this evening. Rates are unanimously expected to remain at near zero, but traders will be keen to learn of any other action the Fed may be taking.

Yen Back on the Offensive in Currency Markets

The Dollar is on the back foot in early trading today with falls of 0.4% against Sterling and the Euro.

The commodity pairs are making a comeback following yesterday’s drop in the price of oil. The Australian Dollar is up over 1% against the US and the Canadian is up 0.64%.

It’s honours even between the Pound, Euro and US Dollar so far this morning with Sterling slightly ahead on balance in early trading. After Monday’s sell off, the Yen is once again on the offensive with gains of 0.3% against the Euro, Pound and Dollar.

The USD/JPY pair could be where the action is, especially with today being a Fed day. The down trend still looks to be in force and ¥90.00 could be a likely target. A Fixed Odds One Touch trade, with the barrier set at this level, over two days could return 142%.

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It’s a mixed bag so far out there today with the FTSE and CAC opening up virtually unchanged, while the DAX has opened down 0.6%.

Banking shares are down on speculation that the G20 clampdown on the sector will hurt profit margins at the remaining independent players such as Barclays. Commodities are also slightly off the boil with crude oil dipping below $72 and gold just 2 points above the $1000 level.

With little economic news for investors to chew on today, it could be a tepid session with the FTSE unlikely to make a meaningful break above the 5190 resistance level. A Fixed Odds No Touch trade with the trigger set to 5195 could be a good way to play this if the FTSE manages to rally today.

Yen on the Back Foot

With Japanese traders away from their desk due to a public holiday, the Yen is on the back foot against a basket of currencies, most notably the US Dollar.

The resurgent greenback is on the offensive on speculation that the Fed will end its stimulus programs. The USD/JPY is up 0.77% while the Yen is also down by around 0.5% against the Euro.

The Pound is once again being hit, falling 0.6% against the Dollar and rising by only small margin against the Yen. Speculation over government spending cuts may be having a disruptive effect on traders’ confidence in the UK currency.

With Japanese traders away for the day and the Pound weak against most other currencies, a Fixed Odds No Touch Higher on the GBP/JPY could be the best way to play the Pound today.

This website content does not constitute investment advice. No individual contributor, contributing company nor Online-Spread-Betting.com accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of the content.

Last night US markets dipped, and European equities are down this morning. However, losses are small with the FTSE, CAC and DAX down by less than 0.2% overall.

Yesterday the FTSE hit a new 12 month high of 5173, just 27 points shy of the 5,200 level. At 5190, the FTSE will have risen by an impressive 50% from the lows of March.

This is an important level for many technical analysts so if a pull back or a pause were to come, the 5190 might be the place it would start.

Today is a quiet day on the economic news front with the standout announcement being UK Public Sector Net borrowing at 09.30 BST.

Pound Hit Hard Ahead of Borrowing Figures

There are some big moves afoot already this morning with the Pound being hit hard in early trading. Traders seem to be taking a dim view about the state of the UK government finances ahead of the UK public sector borrowing figures.

The Pound is down 0.85% against the Dollar and 0.5% against the Yen and Euro. The Pound is not alone in falling today with the commodity pairs of the Australian and Canadian Dollars both falling 0.5% against the US Dollar.

The GBP/USD has potential to go a lot further with the next likely level of support around the $1.6100 level. A speculative Fixed Odds trader could look for this level to be touched in the next three days, which returns 424%.

This website content does not constitute investment advice. No individual contributor, contributing company nor Online-Spread-Betting.com accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of the content.

It’s rally time. Most things associated with risk taking are receiving healthy buying interest at the moment.

Last night US markets closed up around 1.5% higher and look set to add to this when markets open this afternoon.

European markets enjoyed a strong day yesterday and the FTSE, CAC and DAX have all opened around 0.6% higher in early trading. Commodities, especially oil, are pushing higher on rising confidence that the global economy will start to grow again.

Pound and Euro Benefit from Risk Taking

With risk taking on the front foot, the Dollar and Yen are out of favour with the Pound and Euro enjoying a good start in early trading.

The real winners so far today have been the Australian and Canadian Dollars, the so called commodity pairs. These countries have economies that are closely linked to the price of raw materials, so with oil holding above $72 and a basket of other commodities such as copper on the rise, their currencies are in play.

The Australian Dollar recently hit its highest level against the US Dollar for over a year, while the Canadian Dollar looks to be heading back towards parity with the US.

Gold has managed to not just hold above the $1000 marker, but to climb higher and touch multi year highs of $1022. This has brought a small army of speculators in with the all time high of $1032.60 the next possible target.

A Fixed Odds One Touch trade predicting that Gold will hit exceed this and hit $1040 in the next 4 days could return 136%.

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The FTSE’s flirtation with the 5000 level looks like it might be short lived as European markets start the week with a sell off.

The FTSE’s flirtation with the 5000 level looks like it might be short lived as European markets start the week with a sell off.

The FTSE, CAC and DAX are down around 1% in early trading and US futures are indicating that Wall Street will open down by a similar amount this afternoon.

The weekend sentiment has been on the negative side with fears that Obama’s plans to raise the tax rates on certain Chinese imports will start a trade war that could harm the global economic recovery.

There are no top tier economic announcements due today, but speeches from FOMC members Lacker and Yellen in the afternoon could create some ripples in the Dollar pairs.

Euro Holds Ground Well Against Dollar and Yen

As the London session hots up, there are some interesting moves afoot.

Last week the Dollar was out of favour, but this morning it is one of the strongest currencies overall. The are big gains for the Dollar against the Pound, Australian Dollar and Canadian Dollar as oil prices slip below $70 and commodity prices slip.

The Yen seems to be moving more in line with the Dollar today with similar moves against the same currencies. The exception appears to be the Euro which, although down today, has not fallen by as much as other major currencies against the Yen and Dollar.

In the last four trading sessions the EUR/USD has tried and failed to hold above the $1.4600 level. With the likes of the Pound still struggling, it is perhaps unlikely that EUR/USD will find enough momentum to hold the level today.

A Fixed Odds Double (Down) trade might be one way to play this, especially if the price gets closer to $1.4600 today.

This website content does not constitute investment advice. No individual contributor, contributing company nor Online-Spread-Betting.com accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of the content.

It’s been a very good start to the day for European stock markets with the FTSE, CAC and DAX all up by around 0.6%.

Yesterday the S&P 500 and tech heavy Nasdaq 100 smashed through resistance to record their highest levels for the year. The FTSE failed to hold the 5000 level but the overnight sentiment from the US is helping to fuel another surge higher.

Today’s standout economic announcement is UK PPI, at 09.30 BST, with a number of middle tier US economic announcements to follow in the afternoon.

Yen Gains Strength

Perhaps it’s another sign of the effects of the credit crunch easing, but in the last few days, the Dollar and Yen have diverged significantly. Throughout the crisis and until recently, both the Yen and the Dollar were good proxies for risk appetite, with currencies such as the Euro falling against both when investors become nervous.

Now the Yen has broken out of this pattern and is surging higher while the Dollar is experiencing weakness. The Dollar is down nearly 1% against the Yen but for all the headlines about the weak Dollar, its moves against other currencies has been less severe.

Today’s move on the USD/JPY is all about the Yen with the Japanese currency gaining by at least 0.7% against virtually every other major currency.

The GBP/JPY has been relatively range bound for most of the week and today’s fall is bringing the pair towards the bottom of this range around ¥151.35. This makes the GBP/JPY today’s pair in play.

One way to play it may be to wait for the price to get closer to the ¥151.35 level and make a Fixed Odds Double (Up) trade predicting that the GBP/JPY will rise. Then Yen is strong today, but the Pound is holding up well against most other currencies so any downside for the GBP/JPY could be muted.

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The FTSE, CAC and DAX have opened strongly again with the FTSE set to rise further above the 5000 level.

In addition, US futures are already pointing to a strong start for American markets.

Oil is holding above the $70 marker once again, helping to push the commodity heavy FTSE 100 even higher.

After a quiet few days on the economic news front, Thursday is a busy day. We get the latest UK house prices from the Halifax early this morning followed by the latest rate statement from the MPC at 12.00 BST. No change is expected, but traders will be interested to hear the latest plans for use of the Asset Purchase Facility.

Following this we have Trade Balance numbers for Canada and the US at 13.30. At 14.00 the Bank of Canada release their latest rate statement with interest rates expected to remain at 0.25%.

Oil Inventories May Affect USD/CAD

It’s relatively quiet out there so far with the major players waiting for the UK rate statement to set the tone for the day. The standout movers so far are the EUR/JPY and AUD/USD, but this could all change come 12.00.

With crude oil inventories due today as well as the rate statement from the Bank of Canada, there could be some action in the USD/CAD exchange rate making it today’s pair in play. A 1 day Fixed Odds Breakout Trade could be the one way to play this.

This website content does not constitute investment advice. No individual contributor, contributing company nor Online-Spread-Betting.com accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of the content.

The FTSE, CAC and DAX opened largely unchanged this morning with a reasonable morning from financial stocks offsetting a poor morning for mining companies.

Yesterday the FTSE 100 hit a new high for 2009 of 4971, just 29 points from the psychologically important 5000 barrier.

It’s a relatively quiet day on the economic news front with Canadian housing starts at 13.15 BST and the US beige book at 19.00 the standout announcements for today.

Gold Trades Close to $1000

The big currency players are yet to show their hand today. Sentiment is mixed across the forex universe with the Pound and Euro down against the Dollar, but up slightly against the Yen.

The biggest movers so far today are the AUD/USD which is down 0.6% after smashing through the $0.86 level yesterday and the USD/JPY which is up around 0.3% as the ¥92.00 support level holds for now.

Oil enjoyed a strong day yesterday, but for all the headlines about gold, it once again failed at the $1,000 level when seriously tested. This might finally be the time that gold makes it through the magical level, though after a series of fakes in the past.

A Fixed Odds Bull Trade predicting that gold will be higher than $1,000 in 3 days time could return 120%.

This website content does not constitute investment advice. No individual contributor, contributing company nor Online-Spread-Betting.com accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of the content.

It has been another positive start for the FTSE, CAC and DAX, opening up around 0.3% higher.

The FTSE has been the pick of the bunch in recent days with a strong resource sector and takeover activity combining to propel the UK benchmark index to 4955 at the open, its highest level for the year so far.

US futures are already indicating a strong start as American stocks play catch up with European markets after Labor day.

The economic calendar is relatively quiet with UK Manufacturing Production at 09.30 BST the standout announcement alongside Canadian Building permits at 13.30.

Yen Continues Strength in Forex Markets

There have been some interesting moves on the currency markets this morning. For the first time in a while, there is a divergence between the Yen and the Dollar.

In recent weeks both these currencies have been a proxy for risk appetite. As optimism increases in the economy and stock markets, interest in both the Yen and Dollar has diminished and vice versa.

This morning, with stock markets opening strongly, the Pound and Euro are up against the Dollar as you would expect. However, the same two currencies are on the back foot against the Yen, with the Japanese currency in demand this morning.

The USD/JPY is down 0.70% this morning heading towards the ¥92.00 level which looks to be acting as a support level.

Stocks are saying one thing while the dollar is saying another. The USD/JPY is today’s in play currency and one way to play it could be a Fixed Odds No Touch trade with the barrier set as ¥92.00 over 1 day.

This website content does not constitute investment advice. No individual contributor, contributing company nor Online-Spread-Betting.com accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of the content.