The Financial Fixed Odds update from David Evans, Market Analyst, BetOnMarkets.

This morning, the Euro is still the main faller, but everything seems a little too quiet after yesterday’s big moves.

Markets weren’t impressed by the vague assurances issued by France and Germany regarding support for Greece and the Euro was choppy all day.

It’s a fairly busy day today on the economic news front with most of the big items coming from the US.

In the morning though, we’ve got German GDP at 07.00. Analysts are expecting a drop down to +0.2% so keep your eye out for the reaction to the number.

With all the news yesterday focused on what Germany and France will do to bail out Greece, if the German economy itself is seen to be weaker than expected, the Euro could slump even further.

Following this, we’ve got US retail sales at 13.30 with a slight rise expected.

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Indices And Company News

European bourses opened higher on the back of easing of concerns regarding the fiscal scenario in the Eurozone countries like Greece, Portugal and Spain. This included the expectation that the EU will provide some sort of financial support to Greece.

The strength in commodities lifted the equities as well. Basic materials and oil & gas are the best performing sectors as we move into the North American open.

The White House said the recession will never be truly over until unemployment comes back down to more normal levels. They also added that prolonged and robust US growth is needed to close the job deficit.

It went on to say that US payrolls will experience average monthly growth of 95,000 jobs over 2010 and that the US will not have sustainable and durable growth until the country gets its fiscal house in order. (RTRS)

In other news, the Federal Reserve is in talks with money-market mutual funds on agreements to help drain as much as USD 1tn from the financial system. This comes as policy makers prepare for the first interest-rate increase since June 2006, according to a person familiar with the discussions. (BBG)

Also in the news, commercial real estate loans have the potential to go sour and wreck the US economy unless regulators prepare now, according to a report from the TARP watchdog. (BBG)

Finally, the number of US households facing foreclosures in January increased 15% from the same month last year. Added to this is the fact that a surge in cash-strapped homeowners, who’ve fallen behind on their mortgages, could be on the way.

More than 315,000 households received a foreclosure-related notice in January, according to RealtyTrac, that’s down nearly 10% from 349,000 in December, which saw the third highest total since the company began tracking foreclosure data in 2005. (AP)

Forex

Into the European open, the USD index was subdued amid increasing signs that the fiscal situation in the Eurozone countries, especially Greece, is improving.

However, following no firm indications from the EU on an aid package for Greece, the USD index pared most of the losses and ventured into the positive territory moving into the North American open.

Commodities

WTI crude oil futures are trading higher as the US markets open. However the action is in a tight range as market participants looked for more clarity on Greece and also awaited the release of weekly jobless data.

In geopolitical news:

• Iran has produced its first consignment of 20% enriched uranium and has the capability to enrich this uranium to much higher levels.
• However, Iran’s president said that Iranian uranium enrichment is not a route to creating a bomb and Iran doesn’t need uranium above 20%.

Risk Warning: Spread Betting carries a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment, it may not be suitable for all investors. Ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved and seek independent financial advice where necessary.

The above content does not constitute investment advice. Neither Online-Spread-Betting.com nor Paddypowertrader accepts any responsibility for any use that may be made of the above.

The Financial Fixed Odds update from David Evans, Market Analyst, BetOnMarkets.

Yesterday’s storming day took the Dow Jones above the 10,000 level again, but does this mean anything?

The Dow Jones (Wall Street) first rose above the 10,000 level back in March 1999.

At that time there was much fanfare and talk of the Dow hitting 20,000, even 50,000!

Unfortunately since then, according to DShort, the Dow has crossed 10,000 no less than 57 times over 11 years.

Given recent volatility it could be a reasonable bet that the Dow Jones will revisit this familiar level once again in the coming days.

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

The Financial Fixed Odds update from David Evans, Market Analyst, BetOnMarkets.

Back in November, Gold hit all the headlines with a seemingly unstoppable rally to above $1,200 for the first in history.

Analysts were calling for Gold to hit $1,500, but it wasn’t to be with an almost immediate reversal.

On the positive side, Gold has held its ground reasonably well above $1075. Could this be a time for Gold to shine again?

Already today, the Australian trade balance came out slightly worse than expected which is putting further pressure on the Australian Dollar.

Coming up today we have UK services PMI at 09.30 where analysts are expecting a slight drop.

The day’s top announcement is the US ADP Non Farm Employment change due at 13.15. Analysts are expecting the drop in employment to ease again.

US ISM Manufacturing PMI is due out at 15.00 with analysts expecting a slight rise on last month.

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

The Financial Fixed Odds update from David Evans, Market Analyst, BetOnMarkets.

US stock markets couldn’t put up much of fight on Friday as they succumbed to another heavy bout of selling.

The high tech Nasdaq 100 index, the home of Google, Microsoft and Apple, was the heaviest seller on Friday.

Apple sparked a general sell off after analysts were unimpressed by the iPad presentation.

1,734 has acted as support and could be a good level to place No Touch lower trades below.

Forex Trading

Forex Pairs by size of move from peak to low.

Below you can see that the carry trade pairs have been the biggest fallers since the peak in 2010.

The carry trade involves borrowing at near zero interest rates in a currency like the yen and receiving higher interest rates in another currency.

The Aussie dollar has interest rates of 4% and the New Zealand dollar has rates of 2.5%.

The carry trade seems low risk, but because these speculators are leveraged to the eyeballs, a small move can cause a panic sell off as they seek to offload their trades.

Therefore it is little surprise that the New Zealand dollar and Australian dollar are the biggest fallers since the peak in January.

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