U.S. Labor Data Beats Forecasts, Unemployment Rate Falls Again
Feb 3rd
(eToro Blog)The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported earlier that January’s non-farms payroll data showed the creation of 243,000 new jobs. Analysts polled ahead of the release were forecasting an increase of only 150,000 new jobs. December’s data was revised to 203,000 new jobs. Notably, the unemployment rate fell again, this time to 8.3%, even… Read more
OpenBook Traders Jockey for Position as NFP Looms
Feb 3rd
(eToro Blog) The U.S. government will later today release data for January’s non-farms payroll sector. The ADP report released on Wednesday showed that 170,000 new jobs were created against expectations of 185,000 and a marked decline from 325,000 in December. Given that, analysts are expecting that the Bureau of Labor’s official data will show an… Read more
Improved Global PMI’s Broadly Lift Currencies, Gold
Feb 2nd
(eToro Blog) The Euro’s resilience and tenacity is bit of a marvel to some analysts, and certainly quite a few traders. OpenBook guru pyruss is one trader who can clearly benefit from the currency’s volatility, given the dozens of open positions on either side of the EUR/USD pair. It’s a certainty that at some time… Read more
Euro-area PMIs Surprise, but Swiss PMI Disappoints – Is an SNB Intervention Ahead?
Feb 1st
(eToro Blog) In the broader Eurozone area, the earlier release of Purchasing Managers’ Indices for January offered investors a few surprises, most welcome but one decidedly not. In the United Kingdom, the Office of National Statistics read for January’s manufacturing PMI was reported higher at 52.1 from a revised reading of 49.7 and besting the… Read more
Abrupt End to Euro Rally has Traders Rethinking Strategy
Feb 1st
(eToro Blog) A new month opens with a sell-off in the Euro, which hit hard and fast and continues to show signs of retreat. What caused it specifically isn’t clear, though a predominantly bearish sentiment is not unusual given that the underlying factors which created the Eurozone crisis remain. Recently, the Euro-Dollar was trading lower… Read more
Extracting Silver from the Clouds of the Global Financial Crisis
Jan 31st
We can pretend as much as we want that our current way of life is sustainable, but that doesn’t make it so. Even while I drive on the highway, I sometimes wonder, “If gas prices go up to $5 per gallon, how many fewer cars are there going to be on the highway?” I cannot… Read more
Euro Swings Provide Opportunities for OpenBook Traders
Jan 31st
(eToro Blog) Putting a little pressure on the Euro yesterday was news that Portuguese bond yields touched on record highs, suggesting to investors that Portugal is quickly becoming the new Greece. However, that pressure was brief as the Euro-Dollar is currently trading higher at 1.3185. Current support is being attributed to the developing news story… Read more
And Now It’s Portugal
Jan 30th
On Monday, the yield on the 5-year Portuguese note spiked. The yield hit a record for the post-euro era of 22.69%. The trade may have been fueled by the turn of events in Greece. The general perception of the market may be to accept Greece’s default as a given. Last year, markets appeared frightened… Read more
Euro Gets another Bounce even as Equities Slide
Jan 30th
(eToro Blog) Slightly removed from the spotlight given the overwhelming focus on Greece, it’s easy to forget that there are other E.U. members which are also fiscally impaired. Earlier today, The Spanish National Statistics Institute reported that according to preliminary estimates, the Spanish economy contracted by 0.3% in the last quarter of 2011, in line… Read more
As Greek Bond Deal Inches Closer, Government Defends Budget Autonomy
Jan 30th
(eToro Blog) As Davos wraps up and the E.U. economic summit gets under way, news out of the Eurozone this past weekend looks to set the course for a rocky trading week for the common currency. Greece, again, is at the forefront of the news on two separate fronts. First, the Greek government and its… Read more
