Opinion – Friday 4 January 2019

Another big trading session for news and in markets, the fall-out from Apples’ revised Q1 revenue guidance, and a much weaker than expected US December Manufacturing ISM report, the key market drivers. Apple’s share price losses, running at 6-7% during the APAC...

Opinion – Thursday 3 January 2019

A further deterioration in risk sentiment during the European and then early-US sessions saw AUD/USD lose its already tenuous grip on the psychological 0.70 level in early New York trade, the pair’s first foray below 0.70 since 9th February 2016. Back then, AUD was in...

Opinion – Wednesday 2 January 2019

There was a further advance by US stocks on Monday in thin trading, with trade hopes lifted following weekend comments from US President Donald Trump claiming ‘’big progress’’ was being made towards a deal between the US and China. The Dow rose 1.15%, while the Nasdaq...

Opinion – Monday 31 December 2018

US stocks ended slightly lower on Friday in another choppy session, given thin trading, with the S&P 500 handing back over a percent of earlier gains in the last hour to close -0.12%. It still finished 2.86% up on the week, the first weekly gain for the Index in...

Opinion – Monday 24 December 2018

An early-day bounce in US stocks following New York Fed’s John Williams CNBC interview (see below) proves to be of the (very) dead cat variety The S&P closes down 2.06% (-7% on the week, -9.6% YTD). DJIA -1.81% (-9.2% YTD). NASDAQ -2.99% and -8.3% YTD but -21.7%...

Opinion – Friday 21 December 2018

It was another sea of red, the US main board indexes down in size again, led by the FAANG stocks though the market had tried to rally at 8.30 pm before selling off into the close on the worries over a US Government shutdown. The Eurostoxx600  Index declined by 1.45%,...

Opinion – Thursday 20 December 2018

In the face of increasingly shrill protestation from the US President but with support from the Wall Street Journal and a few prominent hedge fund managers, the Fed delivered on pre-meeting consensus expectations and lifted its Fed Funds rate target by 25bps to a...

Opinion – Wednesday 19 December 2018

Two big stories yesterday, another cathartic clean out in oil prices and more pressure from President Trump on the Fed after the Wall Street Journal suggested the Fed should pause. Stocks were down in Europe after the soggy session in Asia, while the US market was...

Opinion – Tuesday 18 December 2018

Equity markets are a sea of red amid a wary mood by investors with soft US data releases not helping the mood either. All three main US Indices closed over 2% lower with the lack of liquidity a major problem. Ahead of the FOMC tomorrow President Trump had another go...

Opinion – Monday 17 December 2018

Things went from bad to worse Friday starting with the RBNZ’s missive proposing that New Zealand’s large banks lift their total capital from 10.5% to 18%. Markets did not react immediately but within half an hour the S&P e-mini and very shortly thereafter NZD and...

Opinion – Friday 14 December 2018

In what has been an orderly and quiet market, the main event has been the outcome of the ECB meeting, its forecasts, guidance and takeaways from the Draghi press conference. The market was primed and expecting a very dovish ECB that the ECB seemed to deliver in its...

Opinion – Thursday 13 December 2018

Yesterday President Trump said it would be ‘’foolish’’ for the Fed to raise Interest Rates again next week, demanding help in his trade fight with the US. The plea rightly fell on deaf market ears with no shift in pricing for a rate rise next Wednesday. This currently...

Opinion – Wednesday 12 December 2018

Markets continue to jump at shadows. News, just after I posted yesterday morning, that China was planning to cut US car tariffs provided a positive start to the European proceedings, but later in the session sentiment was dented again following President Trump’s...

Opinion – Tuesday 11 December 2018

The market and UK political commentators have been widely touting the high likelihood that tomorrow’s Parliamentary vote on Brexit would not get passed and that reality has now been officially grasped by Prime Minister May. May has relented and postponed the vote and...