Forex Crunch Aussie Rising With Economy

Forex Crunch Aussie Rising With Economy


Aussie Rising With Economy

Posted: 01 Sep 2010 03:58 AM PDT


Australian GDP surprised in Q2 with a strong growth rate of 1.2%, higher than expected. This helped AUD/USD settle above 0.90 and aim for the next resistance level. Update on this high yielding currency.

Australia publishes its Gross Domestic Product quite late, and doesn’t provide preliminary releases. After all the wait, the news were good:

The Australian economy grew  by 1.2% in the second quarter of 2010, significantly better than expected – 0.9%. Also the figure for Q1 was revised to the upside – 0.7%, up from 0.5% originally posted. If Q1 wouldn’t be revised to the upside, the result for Q2 would be even stronger.

AUD/USD was trading in a rather narrow range, between 0.8870 to 0.90 before the release. This narrow trading characterized other currencies. But after the release, the Aussie stood out.

It jumped towards 0.90 immediately after the release, and then continued steadily above this round number, peaking around 0.9060, 20 pips short of the 0.9080 resistance line.

A break above 0.9080 will send the pair towards 0.9135, followed by 0.9220 and 0.9327. A fall back below 0.90 will be cushioned by 0.8870.

The Australian economy continues to outshine other Western countries, and so does the high interest rate – 4.50%. Despite 6 rates hikes since the crisis, the economy slowed down only marginally.

Earlier this week, Company Operating Profits surprised with a 18.9% jump (5.9% expected), Building Approvals rose by 2.3%, despite the rate hikes that curbed the housing sector (a drop was expected).

Retail Sales also surprised with a rise of 0.7%, better than 0.4% that was predicted,and the Current Account showed a 5.6 billion deficit, better than expected. The only disappointment came from the Private Sector Credit, which rose by only 0.1%.

All in all, most indicators were great, with GDP leading the pack with an impressive growth rate. The rise in the Aussie is still undermined by the Australian elections that left a hung parliament. As soon as a new government is formed, the road is open for more gains.

Want to see what other traders are doing in real accounts? Check out Currensee. It's free..

EUR/USD Sep. 1 – Struggling in Range

Posted: 01 Sep 2010 12:27 AM PDT


EUR/USD got into narrow range trading, clinging to the uptrend support but breaking higher.  Will the pair pick a direction? Here’s a quick update on technicals, fundamentals  and community trends.

eur usd forecast

EUR/USD within new uptrend channel, that began last week. Click to enlarge.

EUR/USD Technicals

  • Asian session:  EUR/USD bounced from the 1.2665 support line to the 1.2722 resistance line.
  • Current Range is between 1.2665 to 1.2722.
  • Further levels: Below, 1.2610, 1.2460, 1.2330 and 1.2150. Above  1.2722, 1.2840, 1.2930, 1.30 and 1.3110.
  • Uptrend channel lost again: EUR/USD trades in an uptrend channel. Uptrend support began from the lows it reached on August 24th through a low on August 25th. Uptrend resistance began on a swing high on August 24th and was formed on August 26th. This is a notable line. EUR/USD lost it.

EUR/USD Fundamentals

All times are GMT. Most important events emphasized.

  • 6:00: German Retail Sales. Exp. +0.6%, Actual -0.3%. Disappointment.
  • 8:00: Final Manufacturing PMI. Exp. 55 points.
  • 11:30: US Challenger Job Cuts.
  • 12:15: ADP Non-Farm Employment Change. Exp. +20K.
  • 14:00: US ISM Manufacturing PMI. Exp. 53.2.
  • 14:00: US Construction Spending. Exp. -0.4%.
  • 14:45: US FOMC member Elizabeth Duke talks.

EUR/USD Sentiment

  • Market is in risk aversive mood. This means that bad US indicators are dollar positive, although devastating figures that we’ve seen in recent days just shocked the markets.
  • The 1.2610 line is critical on the downside.
  • This is a busy week, with the Non-Farm Payrolls at the end of it. There are two important hints for the NFP today – ADP NFP, which supplies a hint about private sector jobs and the manufacturing PMI, which is an indicator of economic activity in August.
  • Currensee Community: 55% are Short, 45% are long, with shortists having the upper hand. These are 949 open positions in real accounts trading this pair at the moment.

Note – This is a new and still experimental section on Forex Crunch. It’s still in development.

Want to see what other traders are doing in real accounts? Check out Currensee. It's free..

Forex Daily Outlook – September 1 2010

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 02:00 PM PDT


U.S. DAP Employment Report, ISM Manufacturing Index and Australian GDP are at the top of our market moving events for today. Here is an outlook on the economic activities awaiting us.

In the US, Automatic Data Processing Employment Report, a measure of jobs lost or added to the private sector of the economy, also serving as a preliminary estimate for the outcome of the monthly non-farm payrolls expecting a slower jobs creation of up to 20 K jobs in August from 42 K in July and Challenger Job cuts fell 57.2% in July totaled 41,676, a similar number is expected now, however the job-cut report must be analyzed with caution. It doesn’t distinguish between layoffs scheduled for the short-term or the long term, or whether job cuts are handled through attrition or actual layoffs.

More in the US, ISM Manufacturing Index, a leading indicator of industrial activity, expected to register another month of slower growth with the index pulling back to 53.2 from 55.5 in July and ISM Manufacturing Prices also predicted to drop to 55.5 from 57.5 in July.
Later in the US, The Department of Energy reported that in the week ending August 20th, 2010, U.S. crude oil increased by 4.1 million barrels, a smaller increase of 1.3M is expected now and Construction Spending expected to decrease by 0.4% following 0.1% increase in June.

Finally in the US, Total Vehicle Sales predicted to increase by 100K reaching 11.6M and Federal Reserve Governor Elizabeth Duke speaks about Neighborhood Stabilization at the Federal Reserve REO and Vacant Properties Summit, in Washington may affect interest rates and provide info on future monetary policy.

In Europe, German Retail Sales the primary gauge of consumer spending, expected 0.6% rise following a worse than expected drop of 0.9% in the previous month.

More in Europe, Final Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index a leading indicator of economic health is foreseen to remain 55.0 indicating expansion.

For more on the Euro, read the EUR/USD forecast and Casey Stubbs' latest analysis.

In Great Britain, House prices a leading indicator of the housing industry’s health increased by 0.6% in July.  This modest rise offset the 0.6% fall in June and is likely to increase this time as well.

More in Great Britain, Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index a leading indicator of economic health predicted 57.1 points, 0.2 less than in the previous month but overall an encouraging figure.

Read more about the Pound in the GBP/USD forecast.

In Switzerland, SVME Purchasing Managers’ Index expected to drop 1 point to 65.9 indicating stability and growth in the Swiss market.

In Australia, Gross Domestic Product, the main measure of economic activity and growth should confirm the expectations for faster economic growth in Q2 2010 by up to 0.9% q/q from 0.5% in the first quarter.

More in Australia, Commodity Prices a leading indicator of the nation’s trade balance since commodities account for over half of Australia’s export earnings has climbed 7% to 51.0% in July and is expected a similar rise this time as well.
For more on the Aussie, read the AUD/USD forecast.

In New Zealand, ANZ Commodity Prices dropped 0.8% in July a small rise is expected now.
In Japan, Monetary Base measuring change in the total quantity of domestic currency in circulation and current account deposits held at the BOJ forecasted 6.3% rise 0.2% more than in July.

That’s it for today. Happy forex trading!

Want to see what other traders are doing in real accounts? Check out Currensee. It's free.

Forex Blog

Forex Blog


Chinese Yuan has Hardly Budged

Posted: 30 Aug 2010 11:48 PM PDT

The frequency of my reports on the Chinese Yuan is admittedly much higher than it used to be. Why? Call it disbelief. More than two months have passed since China revalued its currency, and after a rapid 1% appreciation, the RMB has actually fallen back. Today, it stands only .5% higher against the Dollar compared to June 18. On a trade-weighted basis, it is actually 2.3% lower. What is going on?!

Chinese Yuan Revaluation 2010

It can foremost be attributed to a disconnect between Chinese words and Chinese action. While The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) purportedly supports a stronger, flexible Yuan (”Adopting a more flexible exchange-rate regime serves China's long-term interests as the benefits…far exceed the cost in reorganising industries and removing outdated capacities.”), in practice, it has prevented the currency from budging. On numerous occasions since supposedly allowing the RMB to appreciate, it has intervened in the forex markets through various shadow dealers to prevent this very outcome.

In fact, China has increased its purchases of South Korean and Japanese sovereign debt, ostensibly as part of its diversification strategy, but more likely to put upward pressure on those currencies. “Data from Japan’s Ministry of Finance show that China bought a net 1.73 trillion yen ($20.3 billion) of Japanese government bonds in the first half of this year, compared with a net sale of 5.9 billion yen ($69 million) a year earlier. That strong demand has been a key factor strengthening the yen in recent weeks.” This could have broad implications, since in the last quarter, China accumulated $81 Billion in new forex reserves, and seems intent on further diversifying out of US Dollar-denominated assets.

China Diversifies Forex Reserves
China’s general obstinacy towards in dealing with the Yuan is baffling to market observers, especially given the trade surplus of nearly $30 Billion in June, its largest since January of 2009. In fact, China can be seen moving backwards. It recently inaugurated a pilot program that will allow exporters to hold offshore accounts of foreign currency, which might be expected to relieve some of the upward pressure on both the Yuan and on China’s foreign exchange reserves: “If you don’t force firms to surrender their foreign-exchange proceeds, then they won’t be exchanged for renminbi, which is a source of appreciation pressure.” In this way, China can both limit speculative capital inflows (even by domestic investors) and inflation.

Foreign governments, led by the US, are still threatening action. Senators and Congressmen continue to harp on the issue (it is election season, after all), and are still threatening to slap a tariff on all Chinese imports. However, their efforts are being undermined by both the Department of Treasury (which refuses to label China a “currency manipulator”) and the Department of Commerce, which recently determined that the application of a broad-based tariff on all Chinese imports would violate its mandate.

I have always been cynical about China’s forex policy, on the basis that it is self-interested and disingenuous, and I think the fact that it remains pegged to the USD confirms that sentiment. In the end, China won’t bow to international pressure. It will only allow the Yuan to appreciate after it has determined that its economy won’t be negatively impacted, and even then, the pace will be glacial.

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Percentage in Point

Percentage in Point


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Posted: 31 Aug 2010 01:10 PM PDT

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4 Investment Safe Heavens for College Graduates

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 10:00 AM PDT

Gone through the tough phase of your college days, got a stable job now and are earning well, then you might be wondering where you could put your cash in order to invest your money in a safe place. So lets look at the options which you could consider:

invest your money

Online Bank Accounts

    This is the most popular option for putting your money into, however, the question still exists as to which bank is the best. This question could be answered by your individual needs since saving accounts tend to vary from bank to bank. Under this it could vary whether you only care about an easy-to-use interface, while others are heavily focused on chasing high interest rates. This also be said that it is the most conservative form on investment.

    Investment Account

      For students those who do not have a financial background then this option might be a bit confusing for which you either will have to do it yourself or you might have to hire a financial planer for yourself. This type ranges from a discount brokerage where you trade securities to safe low-return bonds. Therefore either way, yourself or through a planner, it is recommended that you do it right away and do not hold onto cash for long.

      Physical Assets

        Here you have various options too, whether you would want to invest in an asset such as a car or buy a home. Both are two seperate things in terms of value. This is because in terms of cars it’s been said that the value of the car will depreciate over a period of time so you might lose money. However, if you purchase a home then that might appreciate over some period of time, hence providing returns on your investments.

        Experiences

          This category basically divides people into two kinds of categories, those who wish to save money in a safe investment tool and those who want to invest money into an experience. Saving money in a investment tool has been explained above, however investing in experience means that you put your money something like mountain climbing or going for a world tour, exploring new places, doing new things.


          Alan's Forex Blog

          Alan's Forex Blog


          Forex Overdrive Performance Update #2

          Posted: 30 Aug 2010 10:01 PM PDT


          Hi everyone. It’s been a while since I published my first Forex Overdrive performance update post, so I figured I’d update you all on how my testing is going with this EA. So far so good Forex Overdrive is now in profit by $6485 (starting account of $10,000) so my account balance is now up to $16,485.

          I can’t post the entire performance statement here as it’s HUGE, so here is but a brief excerpt and some useful stats:

          Account: 2622708 Name: alan Currency: USD 2010 August 31, 04:53
          Closed Transactions:
          Ticket Open Time Type Size Item Price S / L T / P Close Time Price Commission Taxes Swap Profit
          173022800 2010.05.05 02:22 balance Deposit 10 000.00
          173067304 2010.05.05 15:00 buy 11.65 eurusdm 1.28670 1.28900 1.29220 2010.05.05 16:06 1.28900 0.00 0.00 0.00 267.95
          173088231 2010.05.06 01:40 sell 11.99 eurusdm 1.28330 1.31610 1.28230 2010.05.06 04:54 1.28230 0.00 0.00 0.00 119.90
          173124178 2010.05.06 13:43 buy 12.21 eurusdm 1.27500 1.27550 1.27900 2010.05.06 14:06 1.27550 0.00 0.00 0.00 61.05
          173162898 2010.05.06 19:31 buy 10.55 gbpusdm 1.48430 1.48570 1.49280 2010.05.06 19:50 1.48570 0.00 0.00 0.00 147.70
          173188320 2010.05.07 02:05 buy 10.70 gbpusdm 1.48500 1.48790 1.48950 2010.05.07 04:03 1.48950 0.00 0.00 0.00 481.50
          173202556 2010.05.07 06:10 buy 11.29 gbpusdm 1.47070 1.47080 1.47300 2010.05.07 07:42 1.47080 0.00 0.00 0.00 11.29
          173210099 2010.05.07 07:46 buy 11.30 gbpusdm 1.47160 1.47290 1.47810 2010.05.07 07:50 1.47290 0.00 0.00 0.00 146.90
          173217634 2010.05.07 09:22 buy 13.20 eurusdm 1.27580 1.27800 1.28680 2010.05.07 10:43 1.27800 0.00 0.00 0.00 290.40
          173220416 2010.05.07 10:05 buy 11.08 gbpusdm 1.46040 1.42760 1.46290 2010.05.07 10:06 1.46290 0.00 0.00 0.00 277.00
          173220527 2010.05.07 10:06 buy 11.42 gbpusdm 1.46330 1.43050 1.46580 2010.05.07 10:27 1.46580 0.00 0.00 0.00 285.50
          ………………….

          180815434 2010.08.30 14:15 sell 19.42 eurusdm 1.26901 1.26874 1.26155 2010.08.30 14:46 1.26874 0.00 0.00 0.00 52.43
          0.00 0.00 -97.55 6 583.02
          Closed P/L: 6 485.47

          Some additional stats:

          Profit Trades (% of total): 134 (97.10%)
          Loss trades (% of total): 4 (2.90%)
          Expected Payoff: 47.00
          Profit Factor: 1.47
          Maximal Drawdown: 11 228.15 (81.48%)

          The maximal drawdown is way too high in my opinion. I mean I’m in profit but bringing the account nearly to its knees is not cool at all.

          None the less it seems trading is going rather well for this EA so who knows maybe that drawdown was a fluke related to the recent market volatility. I dunno, further testing is needed – meaning for a longer duration – to flush out the truth.

          If you wish to share your opinion or join in a discussion regarding this EA you can do so at the following forum thread:

          http://www.forexrobotsforum.com/showthread.php?t=29

          That’s all for now. I’m probably going to have another update on this EA’s performance posted in about 2 to 3 weeks from now.

          Happy trading everyone!

          Cheers,
          Alan

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