Markets are waiting for Yellen

EUR/USD

The market showed a strange reaction to Putin’s speech yesterday. Market participants took positively that Russia didn’t lay claims on the rest of pro-Russian territories of the Ukraine and other post-Socialist countries. Stock markets unanimously set out in the upward direction, whereas the reaction of currencies was contradictory. The initial growth of the euro to 1.3940 (due to risk demand) was followed by a pullback and new intraday lows at 1.3880. If we exclude nervousness caused by the news, the pair has been staying at the same level since the beginning of the week. The focus of attention is expectedly shifting more…

Nervous buying

EUR/USD

The US exchanges rocketed as risk-demand strengthened. Yet, not only the US markets did that. The sanctions, imposed by the West with regard to Russia, proved to be quite mild and apply only to a few Russian and Crimean officials. Of course, it is not the end, this afternoon the Russian president delivers a speech to the legislators, expressing his opinion on the issue. This will inevitably stir up outrage on the part of the USA and EU and entail new sanctions. But until then the single currency is enjoying floating above 1.39 and stock markets are enjoying good demand. Anyway, more…

Markets grew quiet in anticipation of the political resolutions

EUR/USD

The emerging markets feel pressure in connection with risk aversion, while futures and indices of the developing countries as well as the currency market remain relatively quiet. The thing is that the main political fight is still ahead. The overwhelming majority of the Crimean people, as expected, voted for annexing to Russia. America and the new authorities in Kiev, as expected, don’t recognize the referendum and speak about intrusion of the Russian troops into the Ukraine. The West is threatening with sanctions, though the observers,  including the foreign ones, note that the referendum was carried out quietly. The risks are very more…

Two sides of the same day

EUR/USD

The single currency suffered heavy selling. Before that, earlier in the day, bulls had tried to attack and pushed the pair up to 1.3966. But then it was no easy matter to find a reason to purchase the euro. Draghi’s comments and concerns about growth in China delivered a double hit to EURUSD. The ECB governor said yesterday that the forward guidance (implying that the rates will remain at the current or lower level for a long time) would, most likely, put pressure on the single currency. Besides, he added that strength of the currency was getting more and more important more…

Rehabilitated risk-demand

EUR/USD

Despite the tangible pressure, which had weighed upon the single currency in the first half of the day, the US session again was marked by purchases of the euro and in the US stock markets. By the end of the day stock indices had entered the positive territory and by now futures have already recouped two thirds of the correction, which have been in place since the end of the previous week. EURUSD got above 1.39 during the New-York session yesterday and has been steadily trading above this level since then. It was caused by comments of Germany’s Finance Minister Schäuble. more…