Forex Fundamental Analysis

The Greenback continued to show signs of weakening yesterday as the DXY closed just above 77. All majors gained on the Dollar with the exception of the Loonie. The NOK picked up 1.03% from Friday's close. The EUR hit an intra-day high of 1.4557 before retreating. On the back of Dollar weakness Gold jumped up another $13.60 to close at 1,151.85. Oil was essentially flat on the day giving up 23 cents to $82.52 a barrel.

Last week saw the year off to a good start with all of the major stock markets closing higher. In Europe, the FTSE made almost 2.5% in the first full week of trading of 2010, closing at 5534.2; the CAC made 2.8% closing at 4045.1; the Dax put on 1.4%, ending the week at 6037.6.

After a stunning blow to dollar longs, one has to wonder if last Fridays dismal NFP report will continue next month, or if it is just a hiccup in the US recovery. At the start of today's Asian Session the dollar strengthened, but as of now has reversed those gains.

Global Equity Markets finished last week on an upbeat note. On Wall Street, the DJIA gained for a third straight session to close at a high of 10,618.20. In the overnight session, Asia advanced on better than expected Import/Export figures from China, signaling a continue confirmation of a pending global recovery.

Seasoned Japanese Financial minister Hiroshisa Fujii has had to step down from his post due to problems of ill health. The 77 year old tended his resignation to Prime Minister, Yukio Hatayama, who had little option, in the circumstances, but to accept it with reluctance.

One of the most spectacular casualties of the global economic was the state of Iceland. When the Icelandic banks failed, the government was forced to step in and the credit rating of the nation was reduced to “Junk” status by Fitch Ratings, meaning that the country had to pay higher interest rates to investors to attract finances and that the investors could not be certain that their funds were safe.

Much concern has been expressed about the UK’s level of personal debt. The debt is largely racked up on credit cards, through unsecured loans or on bank overdrafts. One consequence of the global recession has been that money on deposit has earned almost no interest – this was intentional on the part of the authorities as a measure to boost consumer spending and to make “cheap” money available to the business community.

Global Equity Markets had another positive day on Wednesday. In the overnight, the Asia session finished lower as China raised yields on their Bills in attempt to curb quantitative easing measures. T

With positive economic reports coming from New Zealand showing the trade deficit declining more then market expectations, boosted traders confidence that a strong New Zealand dollar was not severely impacting the New Zealand economy as previously thought.

The NIKKEI and HANG SENG pushed higher for a third straight session, as automakers lead the way on better than expected sales. In Europe and the U.S, equities were mixed across the board.

Much concern has been expressed about the UK’s level of personal debt. The debt is largely racked up on credit cards, through unsecured loans or on bank overdrafts. One consequence of the global recession has been that money on deposit has earned almost no interest – this was intentional on the part of the authorities as a measure to boost consumer spending and to make “cheap” money available to the business community.

2010 got off to a roaring start on Monday as Global Equity Markets surged on positive Manufacturing data in China and the U.S. On Wall Street, the DJIA gained 1.5% to close at 10,583.96 while the S&P 500 and NASDAQ were up 1.6% and 1.73% respectively

London and other major markets around the world have decided to greet the New Year with optimism, pushing markets to levels not seen for close on a year and a half. The FTSE index closed at 5500, a sixteen month high.

Global Equity Markets finished off the last session of 2009 mixed across the board. Nearly 2.5 times the number of shares were traded on the big board New Years eve as compared to Christmas eve, as traders capped off an explosive year.

Last month saw all of the major stock markets closing higher compared to the where they stood at the beginning of December. December also marked the end of Q4 2009 and, again, all the markets saw growth during the quarter.