Contributors
GBP/USD & Other GBP Crosses Pressured by BOE Minutes
One of the weakest performers today certainly was the Pound as Bank of England Meeting Minutes revealed that two members voted for a larger expansion of the bond purchase program than the £50 billion the bank agreed to in early February. The jury is still out on the actual path of the economy in the middle of the first quarter but with attention again focusing on more money printing from the BOE the GBP’s prospects look weaker than they did to start the week.
USD/JPY Climbs Above 80; Targets 80.50 then 81.50
There is a break above the 80 handle and the USD/JPY continues to rally sharply since bouncing off 76.00. The daily chart shows a very bullish market the RSI pushes above 70 and 80. Although there it suggests near-term overbought condition, it also suggests strength in the break from recent bottoming process, and is a sign of bullish momentum in the medium term…
EUR/GBP Pushes Above Key Resistance of 0.84 and Opens 0.85
For the EUR/GBP, the 0.84 handle represents a key resistance for price action since mid Dec 2011. The 2/22 European market pushed the pair above this resistance, making new 2012 highs and breaking out of a consolidation pattern. The 4H chart shows the strength of the breakout candle and the momentum turning bullish in the short to medium term…
GBP/USD Falls Back to Consolidation and Tests 1.57, Projected to 1.5590
After a counter-trend breakout signaling possible bullish continuation, the GBP/USD failed to reach the Feb. high near 1.5925. Instead, it topped off at 1.5878, and slid sharply in the 2/22 European session start. In the 4H chart, you can see this slide breaking below 61.8% retracement and pivot of 1.5733.
Preview: Euro-zone PMI’s – Possible Catalyst for EUR/USD Direction
With the Greek second bailout agreed to, but with the problem of Greece still not fully resolved, attention now turns to the latest economic figures from the euro zone. In the European Wednesday trading session we see the release of the preliminary readings for manufacturing and services PMI’s for February which could serve as a catalyst to give the EUR/USD direction as we head into the second half of the week.
GBP/CHF Trading at Rising Trendline
The GBP/CHF has been trading sideways since finding resistance at 1.48. The trend prior to consolidation has been bullish from 1.1460 to 1.48. Part of the reason for this jump was the SNB stepping in to intervene, pressuring the CHF.
EUR/AUD in Double Bottom Attempt
The 4H EUR/AUD chart shows a market that is trading sideways finding support at 1.2128, then a failure to break that low holding at 1.2150. The resistance is at 1.2420, with resistance pivots just above 1.2450 as well. This is a possible double bottom attempt if 1.2450 is broken (though confirmation may be needed to rule out a completed ABC correction)…
Preview: China’s HSBC Manufacturing PMI – Next Key Risk Event for Sentiment & AUD/USD
Following the agreement on the Greek 2nd bailout and a “buy the rumor, sell the news” response in currency markets, participants will be looking for the next important catalyst to determine sentiment. That catalyst may come from the release of China’s HSBC preliminary version of its February manufacturing PMI.The report carries important weight for higher-yielding commodity and growth linked currencies such as the Australian and New Zealand dollars. We preview the impact on the AUD/USD pair in our preview.
CADJPY looking good for longs
Have you noticed most JPY crosses are trading in a clear bullish condition? Really, I’m looking for long opportunities on almost all of them. Also, on most of them the short term S&R levels are very clear, take a look at the CADJPY for instance: I’d be looking for long opportunities around the bottom of
Good News for the UK, Not for the Sterling
The British government presented its public sector net borrowing figures earlier this afternoon and indicated in the report was a surplus of 7.75 billion GBP. These figures displayed the largest monthly surplus in public finances since 2008. While the…
EUR/USD Supported at 1.32; Looks To Retest 1.3320
The latest in the Eurozone debt crisis saga is a Greek bailout deal reached. The market had a “buy the rumor sell the news” type of action after initially rallying after the decision, but failing to climb above 1.33 over the 2/21 Aian-European session. The market found support at 1.32 entering the US session, and is climbing back up…
Gold in Bullish Breakout from Consolidation; Break of 1764 Opens 1800
The declining wedge consolidation pattern that started forming at the beginning of February has been broken to the upside. The 4H chart shows that the price action so far this week is pushing above the declining trendline and pushing the RSI above 60. Market is also moving above the cloud of moving averages seen in the 4H chart. These are all bullish continuation signs…
AUD/USD Fails to Confirm Bullish Breakout and is Back in Consolidation
After breaking above a counter-trend trendline, the AUD/USd has failed to confirm. After 2 temporary cracks above the 1.0780 pivot, the AUD/USD was rejected from going above 1.08, this time falling back to the consolidation support area. Furthermore, the RSI failed to break above 60, showing inability to return to bullish momentum and instead reflects a consolidation momentum…
USD/CHF – Double Bottom Versus Expanded Flat Scenarios
After breaking above 0.9262 resistance, USD/CHF failed to extend beyond 0.93. From 0.93, the market slid to 0.9082, just below the previous consolidation support of 0.9088. Here we are seeing a bullish divergence. And even though the second low dipped lower, the 2 attempts can be seen as a double bottom
JPY Remains Weak
The Greek bailout package is certainly dominating the news today, however, there is other news around the market. The USD has continued its strong stance against the JPY. Going into this afternoon the USD/JPY is trading at 79.64. This can be attribute…
Greek Bailout Deal Reached, Big Development is Bigger PSI Writedown
Well its 3AM in Brussels, and Reuters has ran the headline and story that a deal has been reached with the bailout at €130 billion and the goal of getting Greece to reach 121% of debt to GDP in 2020. Pretty close to what was originally intended.
Not much action today huh?
Yeah I know… Banks were closed today in the US, so not much liquidity and most traders are waiting for tomorrow to open their trades (at least that’s what I’m doing). One of the currency pairs I’ll be focusing tomorrow is the EURJPY: I’d like to see the EURJPY retracing back to the main ST
Can GBP/USD Target 1.6090 on Improving Fundamental Factors?
As a result of the better than expected retail sales and housing prices data, as well as the higher than expected BOE inflation forecast – as well as positive sentiment around the resolution of the Greek situation – we see the fundamental factors lining up to favor the GBP against the USD in the short to medium term. We look to see if the GBP/USD pair can target the 1.6090 area as a result.
EUR/USD – Bullish Continuation Versus Head and Shoulder Scenarios
As the EUR/USD rebounded from 1.2974, it faced a cluster of resistance on Friday. These included the 200 hour simple moving average, a counter-trend trendline, 61.8% retracement (1.3188) of 1.3320-1.2974, which was also a previous resistance pivot on 2/15 . As the trading week of 2/19-2/24 starts, the EUR/USD pushes higher, breaking above the cluster of resistance factors…
China Pulls Trigger on RRR Cut, Should Help AUD & NZD
By cutting the reserve ration requirement (RRR) by 50 basis points it should inject around 400 billion yuan ($63 billion) of fresh lending into the economy. Bank lending was very weak in January. The move should be interpreted as a “risk positive” event and can help boost the Asia-Pacific higher yielding commodity and growth linked currencies – the AUD and NZD – to start Sunday’s trading.
