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GBP/USD, GBP/JPY forecast: Forward returns around the UK Budget

The UK spring budget is set to be released tomorrow. And if GBP/USD follows its general pattern around this budget, it could be in for a tough few days - starting from today.

FTSE futures: what are they and how can I trade them?

FTSE futures are a popular way of speculating on the collective price of a group of stocks – usually the FTSE 100. Discover everything you need to know about FTSE futures, including how to trade FTSE 100 futures and when FTSE futures trading hours are.

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Markets demand tighter ECB monetary conditions

This morning saw the euro hit a fresh yearly high against the dollar even before the Eurozone PMI data was released, but it has since been heading lower. The euro’s recent strength is almost as if market participants are trying to front-run the European Central Bank or telling it what to do. Speculators and certain German officials for that matter.

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May 23, 2017 10:42 AM

Dollar woes continue as Merkel says euro is too weak

Last week was a bad one for the US dollar. Market participants questioned whether it was premature to assume a June rate rise was forthcoming and that the path of future interest rate rises would be the same as those as set out by the FOMC's projections.

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May 22, 2017 10:39 AM

Conservative wobble in the polls could unnerve sterling

What a difference a week makes, this time last week Theresa May’s Conservatives were enjoying a 20-point lead over its nearest rivals Labour. Fast-forward seven days and the Conservative manifesto that was releases last Thursday, has gone down with voters like a lead balloon, and now pollster Yougov is saying that Theresa May only has a 9-point lead over Jeremy Corbyn.

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May 22, 2017 07:33 AM

European equities stick with sweet spot

A surge of European stock market volatility abated on Friday, but a down draft which handed continental indices their worst week since the U.S. election keeps attention focused on Washington.

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May 19, 2017 05:53 PM

USD/JPY hanging in balance despite stock market rally

Barring an unexpectedly sharp rally this evening, the dollar is set to end the week significantly lower.

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May 19, 2017 02:55 PM

Gold echoes cagey market sentiment

The price of gold fell yesterday as risk sentiment improved following sharp falls in the equity markets the day before. The dollar bounced back thanks to better-than-expected readings in the Philly Fed Manufacturing Index and weekly US unemployment claims while a mini flash crash in the GBP/USD pair also helped to underpin the Dollar Index, which in turn increased the pressure on gold. Today however, the dollar is once again weaker while equities were slightly stronger in Europe at the time of this writing. Consequently gold was a little firmer.

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May 19, 2017 12:22 PM

Markets still cagey; strong UK retail sales undermines FTSE as pound jumps

It is a bit calmer than chaos this morning following yesterday's big sell-off in global stock markets and sizeable rally in safe haven gold and yen.

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May 18, 2017 06:25 AM

AUD/JPY on watch as risk appetite turns sour

Global stock markets sold off while safe haven gold and yen surged higher today. Market commentators blamed today’s risk-off trade on shenanigans at the White House.

May 17, 2017 02:56 PM

GBP/USD set to break key level amid improving UK data

Economic data out of the UK released in the last couple of days has been pound-positive, yet the GBP/USD is still holding below the 1.30 handle. But for how long? Given that the positively-correlating EUR/USD pair has already broken well above its own corresponding psychological hurdle at 1.10 after a sharp rally, the cable could be playing catch up.

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May 17, 2017 09:29 AM

EasyJet visibility better, ride still bumpy

There’s no lack of shareholder interest in Europe’s Number Two low-cost airline, which is now the eighth largest airline in the world.

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May 16, 2017 05:02 PM

USD/CAD testing key 1.36 handle

As we had anticipated in our previous USD/CAD report on Monday of last week, the North American currency pair’s rebound was indeed temporary. The US dollar fell on the back of mixed-bag economic data while the surge in oil prices helped to underpin the Canadian dollar. Given that net short positions in the CAD had reached lofty levels, it is likely that speculators may now be reducing those bearish bets, which could weigh further on the USD/CAD as key support levels break. So there is the potential for a deeper pullback inside what still is a long-term bullish trend.

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May 16, 2017 01:37 PM

Vodafone's refocus on cash reassures

Vodafone’s 2016/17 earnings, as widely forecast, show the ravages of a year of putting out fires at home and abroad.

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May 16, 2017 11:14 AM

EUR/USD upsurge continues

The euro continues to defy gravity. The single currency is up sharply against all of its major rivals, including the pound which took a beating despite stronger UK inflation figures released this morning.

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May 16, 2017 08:00 AM

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Crude oil gushes higher on Russia, Saudi agreement

The price of oil has surged higher at the start of the new trading week. This has helped to lift energy stocks and also underpin commodity currencies such as the Canadian dollar.

Dollar down but not out as CPI, retail sales disappoint

As we pointed out the possibility in our earlier report on gold, today’s US economic numbers have disappointed the somewhat optimistic expectations

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May 12, 2017 12:47 PM

Gold up as dollar stalls ahead of US CPI, retail sales

The dollar buying witnessed at the start of the week was driven by rising expectations about a June rate hike following last week’s FOMC statement and a solid US monthly jobs report. But the greenback’s bullish run then paused in midweek amid the lack of any further stimulus. Today, market participants will finally have some top tier data at their disposal. The headline consumer price index measure of inflation will be the key figure to watch, although retail sales should also garner some attention, especially after earnings results from key US retailers disappointed expectations.

Commodities: metals, crude oil rebound

Commodity prices are firmer today with base and especially precious metals ending a bad run off losses, while crude oil has extended its gains from the day before when it rallied sharply on the back of the weekly US oil inventories report.

BoE fails to underpin GBP despite warning about rate rise

I can’t exactly say the markets were excited about the Bank of England’s “Super Thursday,” given the lack of any significant move in the pound ahead of the meeting. No one was expecting any changes to interest rates or QE, and so it proved

BoE Super Thursday: stocks to watch

Whilst investors discount the likelihood of much market impact Bank of England’s ‘Super Thursday’, the bank has made one significant policy tweak in recent days.