Anything Happen In The Markets

Today's Comment Today ZEW data will be announced in Germany. Sometimes the economic indicator has added to the market momentum. If today's ZEW figure falls by more than expected, we will most likely see increased pressure on safe havens (USD, GBP and NOKSEK). As the financial market has traded with a negative bias over the past month, the pressure will be on the downside in ZEW as it reflects the financial market players' expectations of the economy. This afternoon, the important retail sales figures will be released in the US. A relatively steep fall is expected. Hence we should not expect good news in that area. Greek election: The three large parties failed in forming a government. Therefore the process of forming a government has ground to a halt, and there are extensive ...

(Reuters) - Gold dropped to a four-month low on Wednesday, pressured by a weaker euro as investors fretted about the political upheavals in Greece that threaten to sink the country into chaos and endanger the euro zone's efforts to end the debt crisis. Spot gold lost more than 1 percent to a four-month low of $1,586.74 an ounce, extending a 2-percent slide from the previous session. It stood at $1,588.64 by 00:13 EDT (0413 GMT). U.S. gold also dropped to a four-month trough, at $1,589.50. The leftwing leader who was mandated to form a government in Greece has so far failed to do so after Sunday's election, as his opposition to a bailout deal seen crucial for the economy alienated mainstream parties and shook market confidence that the euro zone will pull itself out of the debt crisis. ...

Growth fears stemming from Europe are once again weighing on investor sentiment, with the dollar the biggest loser in the FX market and equity markets falling throughout the session. This time it was comments from the radical leader of the Greek leftwing party that stirred the market. The leader of the Syriza party, which came second in the weekend's election, Alexis Tsipras demanded an end to the austerity program and thereby the reversal of the fiscal and structure reforms that have allowed Greece to cut its budget deficit. This is fuelling speculation of a Greek exit from the euro, whilst this may not be a bad thing in the long-term it would likely result in a lot of market volatility and panic as it would be unprecedented territory, and thus no one is sure how it would play out. ...

(Reuters) - Brent crude dropped on Friday to trade just above $119 a barrel on renewed fears about the state of the debt-ravaged euro zone economies following a downgrade of Spain's credit rating. But gains in the previous sessions, spurred by optimism the U.S. Federal Reserve would do what it needs to do ensure recovery in the world's top economy is on course, have put Brent on track for a rise this week after dropping in the last two. Standard & Poor's on Thursday lowered its credit rating on Spain by two notches to BBB-plus, citing expectations the government's finances will deteriorate even more than previously thought due to a shrinking economy and an ailing banking sector. Brent crude fell 39 cents to $119.53 a barrel by 9:44 p.m. EDT, after rising in the past two sessions. The ...

The UK Defies the Odds The big mover of the day was the pound after some better than expected labour market data and a surprise change in stance from one of the Bank of England's most noted doves. Adam Posen's shift towards the majority (i.e., the fence) from voting for more stimuli at the March meeting seemed to have the most impact on the market as it dramatically reduces the prospect of more QE in the near-term. It wasn't that long ago that the UK was expected to get more QE next month, those plans seem to have been shelved for now. The tone of the minutes was fairly upbeat compared to previous months. The Bank noted that funding conditions for the financial sector picked up strongly, and banks in the UK could issue healthy levels of debt in the public markets, suggesting they were ...

Extreme strain in the global economy has given way to something less hair-raising. So does the last investor in "safe-haven" gold, switch out the lights? After a storming start to 2012, bullion prices have lost some of their luster in recent weeks in line with a reassessment of global economic health. Jumbo-sized liquidity taps are off in Europe, while the jury is out on a further round of U.S. quantitative easing. U.S. data shows a slightly improved trajectory, with employment numbers and consumer credit growth highlighted in a key year for President Barack Obama. Treasury yields reflected that, breaking out of the doldrums and raising potential for tighter policy down the road. Given that backdrop it is no surprise that gold has retraced since touching a record $1,920.30 an ounce in ...

US-Iranian saber-rattling or impending shoot-out? In his usual, candid manner, contrarian investor Doug Casey talks about why he believes it’s serious this time… why the US is the greatest threat to peace today… why Iran might move towards a gold standard… and what smart investors should do. Louis James: Doug, I’ve heard you say you think the US is setting Iran up to be the next fall guy in the wag-the-dog show — do you think it could really come to open warfare? Doug Casey: Yes, I do. It could just be saber rattling during an election year, but Western powers have been provoking Iran for years now — two decades, really. I just saw another report proclaiming that Iran is likely to attack the US, which is about as absurd as the allegations Bush made about Iraq bombing the US, when he ...

The Dow down 97 points yesterday. And the Greek story nears its conclusion… The Germans agree to bail out the country…at least for a while… …and the Greeks agree to act more like Germans…at least while everyone is looking… But now everybody agrees that the farce has gone on long enough. Let’s recap: The big banks lent the Greeks money. Then, the bankers paid themselves big bonuses, rewards for having booked so much business. The Greeks spent it like they stole it…which they practically did. With the help of Goldman Sachs, they rigged their accounts so as to appear to be better credit risks than they really were. Then, of course, the Greeks could not repay. Since they gained independence from the Ottoman Turks in 1828, the Greeks never, ever repaid a loan as promised. Instead, they ...

Wow! That was quick! “Greek Bailout at Risk as Party Pushes Back,” reports Bloomberg. “Greece Plunged Into Political Turmoil Over Austerity Measures,” chimes The New York Times. “Greek government hit by resignations,” adds the FT. We spilled a good deal of virtual ink in yesterday’s issue casting doubt and aspersions over the validity of the Greek bailout plan. The story, we reckoned, was at best an old one…at worst an irrelevant one. Bailout or no bailout, the Greeks are broke. The rest is merely noise. Curiously (and to their credit), markets yesterday would not be roused to action, neither by rumour, hearsay or scuttlebutt regarding the imminent, 11th hour deals “struck” between Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi. Instead, they ...