This morning, commodity currencies are leading the way in early trading with the NZD/USD the top mover, up 0.61%. The AUD/USD & AUD/JPY are not far behind, up 0.45%.

The USD/CAD completes the commodity currency movers, down 0.23%.

Elsewhere, forex spread betting markets are travelling less well with the other main forex pairs barely moving.

Trading Today

We’ve an extremely busy day coming up today, with the main talking point the latest news on the ECB’s recent liquidity injections. The 3 year LTRO is released at 10.15.

At 08.55 we have German unemployment change.

UK Net lending figures are released at 09.30 with inflation report hearings to follow at 09.45.

US GDP figures are released at 13.30 with a gain of 2.8% on the cards.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies before congress at 15.00.

Gold Trading Idea

Last week the gold spread betting was flashing overbought and while this did signal a short pullback, the precious metal has ultimately pushed higher.

However, the spread between the price and the Parabolic Stop & Reverse is still flashing extreme levels, something that has signalled a reversal in the past.

A way to trade this again might be a LOWER trade on gold predicting that it will close below $1775 in 14 days time for a potential return of 120%.

Editor’s note: If you lose a financial fixed odds trade you lose 100% of your stake.

This is presented as an idea to stimulate fixed odds financial betting ideas and is not financial advice.

The Markets Yesterday Afternoon

Yesterday afternoon, the EUR/USD held the bulk of its morning gains despite a surprise announcement from Ireland that it would be holding a referendum on the EU fiscal compact.

While this could in theory scupper progress made over the last couple of weeks, many analysts believe this to be a case of political manoeuvring.

Michael Cartine of IFR puts this well “Allowing Greece to write down substantial portions of outstanding debt would not go unnoticed by other beleaguered Euro governments, particularly those in EU/IMF/ECB programmes and particularly Ireland which has always sought to ease the burden of its guaranteed bank debt.”

Elsewhere, the yen recovered from the morning’s early weakness, putting pressure on the early movers such as the AUD/JPY.

The biggest gainer was gold which is rallied over 1% after a two day slump.

 
Before trading with spread betting, CFDs or financial fixed odds ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all investors, seek independent financial advice where necessary.

Note that spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment.

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

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.
 

In forex spread betting, the euro is rallying this morning with the EUR/USD up 0.43% and within a day’s session of making new three month highs.

Even S&P declaring Greece as being in selective default isn’t enough to knock the rally sparked by the German passing of the bailout bill.

The EUR/JPY is the leading pair this morning, up 0.75%, with the GBP/JPY and AUD/JPY not far behind at +0.64%. The yen is on the back foot once again with the USD/JPY up 0.35%.

The gold spread betting market is benefiting from the renewed dollar weakness with the precious metal up 0.46%.

Trading Today

Coming up today we have UK CBI realised sales due at 11.00 with a drop in activity expected.

US Core durable goods follow at 13.30 with consumer confidence numbers released at 15.00. Markets will be hoping for another US economic led boost today.

AUD/JPY Trading Idea

The yen showed that volatility is never far away yesterday with a big down move on the USD/JPY.

This morning things are back on trend with the AUD/JPY the best placed to spring board to new highs.

Higher levels seem the most likely path, but as we saw yesterday, any downside moves could be swift and violent.

A way to trade this might be an IN/OUT trade with the barrier’s skewed to reward a small move higher or a big move down.

An IN/OUT trade predicting that the AUD/JPY closes outside of either 87.75 or 85.25 in 3 days time could return 125%.

Editor’s note: If you lose a financial fixed odds trade you lose 100% of your stake.

This is presented as an idea to stimulate fixed odds financial betting ideas and is not financial advice.

The Markets Yesterday Afternoon

It was an interesting trading session yesterday with various currencies spinning off into different directions.

The main mover was the yen which continued to strengthen throughout the day.

The move was further fuelled by better than expected US pending home sales which sparked a flow of money out of the dollar and into the yen.

The USD/JPY was down 1.08%, but it was the EUR/JPY that had been the top mover, dropping 1.40%.

The EUR/USD was down 0.32% as markets awaited the outcome of the German vote on the Greek bailout.

This was widely expected to pass though. The main driver of yesterday’s euro weakness was some technical details of the Private Sector Involvement which seem to imply that a formal default could be declared as early as next week.

The commodities currencies saw the biggest rebound though, trading in direct contrast to the euro and pound, reflecting the ‘risk-on’ bias with the day’s session. The AUD/USD was up 0.73% on the session.

 
Before trading with spread betting, CFDs or financial fixed odds ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all investors, seek independent financial advice where necessary.

Note that spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment.

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

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.
 

This morning forex spread betting pairs that usually represent risk taking are backing off significantly from their early highs in the small hours of the morning.

The Australian dollar in particular is weak in early trading, with the AUD/JPY down 0.55% and the AUD/USD down 0.25%. The NZD/USD is also trading lower in sympathy, with the NZD/USD down 0.24%.

After powering through the 81.00 level on Friday, the USD/JPY could be seeing first significant pull back today as the yen strengthens into the European session. The USD/JPY is down 0.31%.

Elsewhere in gold spread betting, the precious metal is lower in line with the commodity currencies.

Trading Today

We’ve a fairly light economic calendar today starting with European M3 money supply data at 09.00.

US pending home sales is the only top tier economic announcement today, with an increase of 1.1% expected.

USD/CAD Trading Idea

The USD/CAD has been oscillating above and below throughout much of February, which often happens prior to a more sustained move on with this pair.

With the dollar beaten up pretty badly in recent weeks, a rebound for the Greenback could be on the cards.

A way to trade this might be a HIGHER trade predicting that the USD/CAD closes above 1.0100 in 14 days time for a potential return of 234%.

Editor’s note: If you lose a financial fixed odds trade you lose 100% of your stake.

This is presented as an idea to stimulate fixed odds financial betting ideas and is not financial advice.

The Markets Friday Afternoon

On Friday afternoon, the British pound was the leading currency despite the latest data confirming that GDP dropped by 0.2%.

The GBP/JPY was up a sizeable 1.93% with the GBP/USD up 0.82%. The pound was also showing some relative strength against the euro, with the EUR/GBP dropping 0.12% on the day.

The yen continued to sag, with the USD/JPY rallying over 1.00%.

It was not all positive movements though with the AUD/USD and other commodities strangely subdued.

The AUD/USD was down 0.23%.

 
Before trading with spread betting, CFDs or financial fixed odds ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all investors, seek independent financial advice where necessary.

Note that spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment.

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

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.
 

Where to Spread Bet on Bodycote

You can trade on spread betting markets such as Bodycote with spread betting companies like:

• Capital Spreads
• Spreadex
• CMCMarkets

To see which companies offer 24 hour trading, new account offers, stop losses and trading charts see Spread Betting Companies.

How to Spread Bet on Bodycote

Should you decide to spread bet on UK shares like Bodycote then, looking at a spread betting site like Capital Spreads on Friday, you may have seen a spread of 395.9p – 398.8p.

This means you can spread trade on Bodycote to go above 398.8p or below 395.9p.

When making a spread bet, investors trade on every unit the market rises or falls; in the case of the Bodycote shares spread betting market a unit is 1p of the share’s price movement.

With this example, you could choose to bet £10 for every penny Bodycote moves up or down.

Betting on the Market to Move Up

If you were to go long of Bodycote at 398.8p and the shares rose then the spread might become 411.2p – 414.1p. If this were the case, you might decide to close your trade for a profit at 411.2p.

P&L = (closing price of the market – initial price of the market) x stake per penny
P&L = (411.2p – 398.8p) x £10 per penny stake
P&L = 12.4p x £10 per penny
P&L = £124.00 profit

Conversely, if the market decreased to, for example, 384.8p – 387.7p, you might decide to close your trade to prevent further losses. If that were to happen, you would sell your spread bet at 384.8p.

You would do this with the same £10 per penny stake:

P&L = (closing price of the market – initial price of the market) x stake per penny
P&L = (384.8p – 398.8p) x £10 per penny stake
P&L = -14.0p x £10 per penny
P&L = -£140.00 loss

Betting on the Market to Move Down

One of the many benefits of spread trading is that you can go short of the markets.

If you recall, initially the spread was 395.9p – 398.8p.

If you were to go short of Bodycote at 395.9p and the shares fell then the spread could become 383.8p – 386.7p. Assuming this was the case, you might want to close your spread bet for a profit by buying at 386.7p.

P&L = (initial price of the market – closing price of the market) x stake per penny
P&L = (395.9p – 386.7p) x £10 per penny stake
P&L = 9.2p x £10 per penny
P&L = £92.00 profit

Markets can also rise, if the market had increased to, as an example, 403.4p – 406.3p, you may decide to close your bet to restrict your losses. If that happened, you would buy your spread bet at 406.3p.

You would close your bet with the same £10 per penny stake:

P&L = (initial price of the market – closing price of the market) x stake per penny
P&L = (395.9p – 406.3p) x £10 per penny stake
P&L = -10.4p x £10 per penny
P&L = -£104.00 loss

Bodycote Rolling Daily spread betting prices quoted as of 24-Feb-12.

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.

Where to Spread Bet on Galliford Try

You can trade on spread betting markets such as Galliford Try with spread betting companies like:

• Capital Spreads
• GFT
• CMCMarkets

To see which companies offer 24 hour trading, new account offers, stop losses and trading charts see Spread Betting Companies.

How to Spread Bet on Galliford Try

If you decide to spread trade on UK shares like Galliford Try then, looking at a spread trading website like Financial Spreads on Friday, you may have seen a spread of 571.3p – 574.7p.

That means you could spread trade on Galliford Try to increase above 574.7p or decrease below 571.3p.

With spread betting, you bet on every unit the market rises or falls; in the case of the Galliford Try market a unit is 1p of the share’s price movement.

As an example, you might decide to spread bet £5 for every penny Galliford Try moves up or down.

Buying – Spread Betting on the Market to Increase

If you were to go long of Galliford Try at 574.7p and the shares went up then the spread might become 594.8p – 598.2p. In that case, you might choose to close your bet for a profit at 594.8p.

Profit/Loss = (final level of the market – initial level of the market) x stake per penny
Profit/Loss = (594.8p – 574.7p) x £5 per penny stake
Profit/Loss = 20.1p x £5 per penny
Profit/Loss = £100.50 profit

Financial markets also move down, if the market were to drop to, for example, 557.5p – 560.9p, you might want to close your spread bet to restrict your losses. Assuming this was the case, you would sell at 557.5p.

Therefore, with the same £5 per penny stake:

Profit/Loss = (final level of the market – initial level of the market) x stake per penny
Profit/Loss = (557.5p – 574.7p) x £5 per penny stake
Profit/Loss = -17.2p x £5 per penny
Profit/Loss = -£86.00 loss

Selling – Spread Betting on the Market to Decrease

One of the many benefits of placing a spread trade is that you can short the markets.

The initial market was priced at 571.3p – 574.7p.

If you were to sell Galliford Try at 571.3p and the shares decreased then the spread might become 542.9p – 546.3p. If that were to happen, you might decide to close your bet for a profit by buying at 546.3p.

Profit/Loss = (initial level of the market – final level of the market) x stake per penny
Profit/Loss = (571.3p – 546.3p) x £5 per penny stake
Profit/Loss = 25.0p x £5 per penny
Profit/Loss = £125.00 profit

Markets can also rise, if the market were to rise to, as an example, 589.3p – 592.7p, you may want to close your bet to restrict your losses. Therefore, you would buy at 592.7p.

You would close your bet with the same £5 per penny stake:

Profit/Loss = (initial level of the market – final level of the market) x stake per penny
Profit/Loss = (571.3p – 592.7p) x £5 per penny stake
Profit/Loss = -21.4p x £5 per penny
Profit/Loss = -£107.00 loss

Galliford Try Rolling Daily prices quoted as of 24-Feb-12.

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.

This morning the Japanese yen is continuing its remarkable run in February, with the USD/JPY set for its first three week rally since March 2011. Last time the pair immediately reversed.

This morning the USD/JPY is up 0.75%, pushing most other yen FX spread trading pairs higher by a similar margin.

Away from the yen there isn’t much movement so far with the dollar pairs moving little so far.

Trading Today

Coming up today, we have the latest UK revised GDP figures which are expected to come in at -0.2%.

Following this we have US new home sales at 15.00.

EUR/GBP Trading Idea

For much of 2011, the weekly chart of the EUR/GBP displays a fairly consistent back and forth trading pattern.

More often than not, an up day is followed by a down day and vice versa. The November Greek panic being the evident exception.

It would be probably be wise to wait until after the release of today’s UK GDP figures, but a way to trade this might be a LOWER trade predicting that the EUR/GBP closes below 0.8450 in 7 days time. This could return 202% if successful.

Editor’s note: If you lose a financial fixed odds trade you lose 100% of your stake.

This is presented as an idea to stimulate fixed odds financial betting ideas and is not financial advice.

The Markets Yesterday Afternoon

Yesterday afternoon, the euro continued to strengthen despite the European commission downgrading its economic forecasts for 2012.

The most likely reason for the discrepancy is that financial spread betting markets were already ahead of such news and had priced in such an outcome already.

The EUR/USD was up by 0.54% with the EUR/GBP rallying 0.29%.

Away from the euro, most currencies were as they were through the morning session with the AUD/JPY holding on to the morning’s gains despite weakness around lunch from the Japanese yen.

 
Before trading with spread betting, CFDs or financial fixed odds ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all investors, seek independent financial advice where necessary.

Note that spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment.

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

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.
 

This morning, the US dollar is slipping back with the AUD/USD leading currencies in the other direction.

The Aussie is fighting back after slipping recently on news of an Australian leadership vote. The AUD/USD is up 0.34% with the AUD/JPY up 0.15%.

The euro is also having a decent morning, with the EUR/USD up 0.24% despite calls from Spain to make its bailout terms less onerous.

Elsewhere in FX spread betting, the yen is showing some strength for the first time in some days, but even so the move is only small with the USD/JPY down by 0.12%.

Trading Today

Coming up today we have German IFO Business Climate due at 09.00, a slight rise is expected.

UK BBA Mortgage approvals follow at 09.30 with CBI Industrial Order Expectations following again at 11.00.

US unemployment claims are released at 13.30 with a slight increase on the cards.

Gold Trading Idea

Gold spread betting markets have put a decent run together recently, but is this now a sign of strength or an opportunity to trade a pull back?

The precious metal has certainly been hard to predict this last six months, often acting as a measure of confidence not risk aversion as it historically has.

One means of checking gold’s over bought or oversold nature is to measure the spread between the current price and the Parabolic SAR. Any unusually large gaps between the two can signal turning points.

Currently this spread is flashing caution on both the weekly and daily charts which presents an opportunity.

A way to trade this situation might be a LOWER trade predicting that gold closes below $1750 in 7 days time for a potential return of 220%. We may need two bites at this cherry.

Editor’s note: If you lose a financial fixed odds trade you lose 100% of your stake.

This is presented as an idea to stimulate fixed odds financial betting ideas and is not financial advice.

 
Before trading with spread betting, CFDs or financial fixed odds ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all investors, seek independent financial advice where necessary.

Note that spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment.

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

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.
 

This morning, FX spread betting markets appear to be cautiously optimistic despite analysts continuing to unpick the Greek debt detail even before the ink is dry.

The euro is showing some relative strength, especially the EUR/JPY which is up 0.67% in early trading.

This move comes primarily on the back of the yen’s continued slump, with February showing a remarkable rally for the USD/JPY from 76.0 up to 80.0.

Other yen pairs are following suit with the AUD/JPY up 0.51% and the GBP/JPY up 0.54%.

Trading Today

This morning we have a host of European manufacturing and services data with French and German data disappointing so far. European wide Flash data is due at 09.00.

The minutes from the last MPC meeting are released at 09.30.

At 15.00 we have US existing home sales.

AUD/JPY Trading Idea

The AUD/JPY has been riding the yen’s slump since the start of February and after Tuesday’s dip, there could be more upside ahead.

A way to trade this might be a HIGHER trade predicting that the AUD/JPY closes above 85.75 in 5 days time for a potential return of 144%.

Editor’s note: If you lose a financial fixed odds trade you lose 100% of your stake.

This is presented as an idea to stimulate fixed odds financial betting ideas and is not financial advice.

The Markets Yesterday Afternoon

Yesterday afternoon the Dow Jones passed 13,000 briefly for the first time since 2008.

However, away from this milestone, it was a decidedly mixed days trading.

The euro made little progress through the day as analysts unpicked the latest Greek bailout, with many already predicting the need for another one soon.

The big mover was gold, which pushed higher by over 1.3%.

 
Before trading with spread betting, CFDs or financial fixed odds ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all investors, seek independent financial advice where necessary.

Note that spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment.

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

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.
 

This morning offers further proof that financial spread betting markets are forward looking machines.

After yesterday’s pre-announcement rally, the euro is unchanged this morning on the official confirmation of a Greek debt deal.

The EUR/USD is unchanged, while the EUR/JPY is up 0.28%, primarily on the back of further yen weakness, with the USD/JPY up another 0.23%.

The biggest movements this morning are coming from down under with the AUD/USD off by 0.39% and the NZD/USD off by a similar margin.

This follows hints from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) that it has room for monetary easing if required.

Gold looks like it may be putting two consecutive up days together for the first time since the start of the month.

Trading Today

Coming up today we have UK public sector net borrowing at 09.30 with a drop in borrowing expected.

Running in the background all day we have a meeting of European Economic Finance Ministers.

Canadian retail sales follow at 13.30 with wholesale sales released at the same time.

AUD/USD Trading Idea

The AUD/USD has been particularly prone to pull backs this year with an up day often followed by a down day.

Applying the 2 period RSI to the pair and buying on weakness (RSI below 50) and selling on strength would have been profitable since January 2011.

Buying into weakness in this way has a 65% success rate on the pair, but this would this wouldn’t normally be much of a trading strategy because the losses when they do come are very large.

With fixed odds betting things are a little different though so today’s dip could present a buying opportunity.

A HIGHER trade predicting that the AUD/USD closes above 1.0750 in 1 days time could return 116%.

Editor’s note: If you lose a financial fixed odds trade you lose 100% of your stake.

The Markets Yesterday Afternoon

With US stock markets closed yesterday, and a lack of any real economic data, forex spread betting markets were pretty much as they were at the start of the European session.

The main exception was the euro which leapt on news that a Greek deal may finally be in the offing.

The EUR/USD was up 0.82% with the EUR/GBP up 0.68%.

 
Before trading with spread betting, CFDs or financial fixed odds ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all investors, seek independent financial advice where necessary.

Note that spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment.

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

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.
 

This morning spread betting markets are extending their recent 2012 rally after Chinese authorities opted to pump more money into the economy and Greece inched closer to a resolution.

The FTSE 100 is up over 0.50% in early trading with US index futures up by around 0.2%.

The main ‘risk on‘ currencies are leading the rally with the NZD/USD up 0.87% and the AUD/USD up 0.49%.

The euro is also pushing higher with the EUR/USD up 0.41% and the EUR/GBP up 0.20%.

The USD/JPY‘s rally is showing signs of slowing this morning with the USD/JPY down by 0.10%.

Trading Today

There’s no meaningful economic data due out today and volatility could be extra light due to the US Bank Holiday.

USD/JPY Trading Idea

The USD/JPY has been on strong rally lately as the yen backs off. The pair has been as high as 79.80 this morning, a level that has previously acted as a support point.

Previous support can often act as resistance, so if the current USD/JPY run is to stop, here is a good a place as any.

A way to trade this might be a LOWER trade predicting that the USD/JPY closes below 79.25 in 3 days time for a potential return of 107%.

This is presented as an idea to stimulate fixed odds financial betting ideas and is not financial advice.

Editor’s note: If you lose a financial fixed odds trade you lose 100% of your stake.

The Markets Friday Afternoon

It was a mixed day’s trading on Friday with the main theme being the continued weakness shown by the Japanese yen.

 
Before trading with spread betting, CFDs or financial fixed odds ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved. These products may not be suitable for all investors, seek independent financial advice where necessary.

Note that spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment.

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

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.