Ranges dominate ahead of payrolls

October 4, 2012 — Mitul Kotecha

Markets were given a boost as US recovery hopes strengthened in the wake of encouraging data out of the US, with both the ADP private sector jobs report and ISM non manufacturing index beating forecasts. Consequently the data will lead to some revision higher of expectations for September non farm payrolls to +135k.

The European Central Bank (ECB) meeting today will not be particularly noteworthy as it takes place just a month after the Outright Monetary Transactions (OMT) announcement. There is an outside chance of a policy rate cut but recent ECB comments suggest this is unlikely. The main question remains about the timing of OMT activation but the ball is firmly in Spain’s court on this issue. So far there is no indication of an imminent request for Spanish aid.

The bottom line is that the ECB meeting will have nowhere near the same impact on the EUR as the last meeting, with the currency set to remain tightly range bound ahead of Friday’s US payrolls data or until Spain decides to formally request a bailout. EUR/USD will find resistance around 1.2971 and support at 1.2804 in the short term.

GBP continues to look vulnerable both against the EUR and USD. Having dropped from its highs above 1.63 versus USD the downward trajectory looks well entrenched. My quantitative models corroborate this view, with the models pointing to EUR/GBP trading closer to 0.82. Weaker data including both the manufacturing and service sector September purchasing managers indices (PMIs) both of which missed forecasts are helping to undermine the currency.

The Bank of England (BoE) meeting outcome today will not have much of an impact on GBP given a likely unchanged decision but we continue to believe that the central bank will expand its balance sheet further in November, which in turn will act as another drag on the currency.

AUD has been dealt a major blow this week following the surprise rate cut from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). Clearly external concerns are leaving open the prospects of further rate cuts which in turn are damaging sentiment for AUD. Even so, my correlation analysis shows that the AUD has lost some of its interest rate sensitivity, suggesting that it may not suffer too much further.

The currency’s recent drop from its mid September high around 1.0626 has shaken out plenty of long positions and we suspect that further downside in the currency will be more limited. We expect to see good support for AUD/USD around the 1.0165 level while AUD is also likely to see some stabilisation on the crosses including against the NZD.

Posted in Bank of England, ECB, Economics, eurozone, Spain, US. Leave a Comment »

Euro relief, but will it last?

September 8, 2012 — Mitul Kotecha

The European Central Bank (ECB) decision to embark on outright monetary transactions helped to provide a major lift to markets but did not spur the EUR onto major greater gains. The program of conditional albeit unlimited bond purchases was much anticipated and well received (except by the German Bundesbank) despite many of the details being leaked in advance. The lack of EUR reaction in part reflected this.

In fact, the EUR appeared to rally more in the wake of aggressive buying of EUR/CHF, which finally moved away from its 1.2000 floor, possibly with some official help. Markets will now await the decisions of Spain and Italy which would have to formally request aid for the bond buying plan to be put into action and perhaps there will be some hesitation on the part of the EUR to push higher.

Although there could be some nervousness ahead of the decision by the German constitutional court on the ESM permanent bailout fund and Dutch elections on 12 September the ECB’s move has provided a floor under risks assets over the short term. Given the EUR’s strong relationship with peripheral Eurozone bond yields, the implication is that the drop in the yields will provide some support for the EUR.

Before everyone becomes too excited it should be noted that there is still a long way to go before the Eurozone crisis will be resolved given the many structural and growth issues that need to be overcome. Nonetheless, the downside risks for the EUR are clearly diminishing, leaving the currency in better shape than it has been for a long while.

The fact that EUR/USD is back above its 100-day moving average is a positive signal. Moreover, despite some short covering the market is still very short EUR. However, we would be cautious about becoming overly bullish. Further gains in the EUR will be difficult to achieve given the constant drag on the currency due to relatively weaker growth and the simple fact that many of the underlying issues in the Eurozone remain unresolved.

Posted in ECB, Economics, eurozone, Germany. Tags: , , , , . Leave a Comment »

JPY, SEK and GBP view

August 30, 2012 — Mitul Kotecha

USD/JPY remains stuck within a tight range having reversed its recent break higher towards the 80.00 level, once again settling back below 79.00. Once again the main determinant of the exchange rate appears to be yield differentials and notably the JPY has had a very low sensitivity to gyrations in risk over recent months.

For JPY bears it it’s worth noting that US 2-year bond yields have began to edge higher this week, suggesting some upward pressure on USD/JPY. The speculative market remains net long JPY suggesting scope for a drop in JPY speculative appetite too, but any upside is set to be gradual, with a technical hurdle at around 79.37 likely to be tough level to break above.

EUR/SEK has edged higher over recent days following its dramatic multi month drop. Why has the currency pair turned now? One of the key factors appears to be an increased sensitivity to risk which is playing negatively now that risk aversion is rising again. Indeed my risk barometer has been moving higher since around the middle of the month, in turn dragging SEK lower.

My quantitative model estimate based on interest rate differentials, relative equity performance and risk aversion, suggests that the SEK has further to weaken especially against the EUR. Based on the results of the model I suggest playing for such a move, targeting 8.7252, with a stop loss at 8.1616.

Another currency for which I am bearish on versus EUR is GBP. Although the move higher in EUR/GBP has been a slow grind, I continue to see value in this trade. Indeed, my models show that there is still much upside potential left for EUR/GBP based on the current levels of yield differentials and risk aversion.

As for cable (GBP/USD) it appears to be stuck to the coattails of EUR/USD but I expect it to lag any move higher in EUR/USD going forward. Moreover, if as I expect EUR/USD loses momentum into next week, this will leave GBP/USD rather exposed to downside risks.

Posted in Economics, Japan, Sweden, UK. Tags: , , , . Leave a Comment »

US dollar could stall as QE hopes rise

June 4, 2012 — Mitul Kotecha

Growth concerns are increasingly accompanying Eurozone tensions as major weights on market sentiment. US jobs data at the end of last week which revealed a disappointing 69k increase May payrolls added to other data including weaker than expected Chinese purchasing managers index (PMI) and even more disappointing Eurozone data highlighting intensifying downside risks to economic activity.

Combined with the lack of traction towards solutions to the Eurozone crisis it has led to an acceleration in the demand for safe haven assets. The weak US data has also reopened the debate about more US quantitative easing, with Fed Chairman Bernanke’s congressional testimony on the economic outlook on Thursday likely to garner plenty of attention.

Another central bank under pressure to act is the European Central Bank (ECB) but action such as restarting its Securities Market Purchases program and/or a third Long Term LTRO are unlikely to take place at least until after the Greek election on June 17 if at all. Until then investors will have to put up with more procrastination, prevarication and inaction from policy makers in Europe as the ECB continues its game of chess with European politicians.

Other central banks in focus this week include the Reserve Bank of India (RBA) and Bank of England (BoE) but while the ECB may still cut policy interest rates this week it is not obvious that the other central banks will follow suit despite growing pressure for easier policy. Against this background risk measures will remain highly elevated while core bond yields will remain suppressed and the USD will remain on the front foot.

The weaker than forecast US May jobs report has really set the cat among the pigeons. The prospects of more Fed quantitative easing is firmly back on the table and while Fed Chairman Bernanke is unlikely to countenance such action in his testimony this week, the market will still speculate on this option. Consequently the USDs one way bet is not longer so clear cut despite the elevated level of risk aversion providing some support for the currency.

Ahead of Bernanke’s testimony on Thursday the USD will struggle to make too much headway leaving the currency to consolidate its gains in the short term. Other US data releases this week are inconsequential for FX markets although the Fed’s Beige Book will be watched for clues ahead of the Fed’s 19-20 June FOMC meeting.

EUR/USD is well off its lows and will consolidate ahead of Thursday’s ECB meeting. Event risk is high and various rumours have resulted in a cautious tone for EUR bears. Talk of a ‘secret master plan’ consisting of structural reforms, banking union, fiscal union and political union to save the EUR as well as of the ECB buying sovereign bonds will keep markets wary of aggressively selling EUR from current levels. Attention is centred on Spain and its banking sector and debate about the country is next in line for a bailout.

Worries about Spain and of course the outcome of Greek elections on June 17 will limit any bounce in the EUR. Nonetheless, speculative positioning in EUR/USD reached another all time low in the latest week according to the CFTC IMM data, suggesting that scope for short covering is growing. EUR/USD will find technical support around its 2012 low around 1.2287 while upside potential will be restricted to resistance around 1.2505.

Posted in Economics, eurozone, FX, US. Tags: , , , , . Leave a Comment »

EUR/CHF still clinging to 1.2000

May 31, 2012 — Mitul Kotecha

The job of the Swiss National Bank has become increasingly tougher over recent weeks. Speculation of a Greek exit or ‘Grexit’ and continued flight of capital from Greece as well as other peripheral countries mean that there is more prospect of upside for the CHF than downside versus EUR. The EUR/CHF 1.2000 floor has not deterred investors from parking such capital in CHF, much to the chagrin of the SNB, which has even warned about implementing capital restrictions.

Elevated risk aversion means that inflows of capital to Switzerland from the Eurozone periphery will persist. As a result, EUR/CHF looks set to trade around the 1.2000 floor for some time to come, with the risk that the SNB increasingly has to buy EUR to protect the floor. My forecasts reflect the view that any CHF weakness versus EUR will be extremely gradual in the months ahead as I expect any improvement in risk appetite to be similarly slow.

On the economic front the arguments for CHF weakness have actually lessened. Consumer confidence increased to its highest in a year in April. More importantly from the point of view of the SNB, Switzerland has registered positive CPI readings on a monthly basis for the past three months. Unfortunately, CPI is still negative on an annual basis, meaning that deflationary concerns continue to persist. On balance, the SNB’s fears over deflation will eventually lessen, suggesting in turn that worries about CHF strength will also be pared back.

Although the CHF has remained strong against the EUR it has weakened against the USD, but this is attributable to EUR weakness (due to the EUR/CHF floor) rather than inherent CHF weakness.
It will not be a one-way bet lower against the USD for both the EUR and CHF. The speculative market is highly short both currencies and they could rally in the event of any good news from Greece or the Eurozone. The CHF may also find itself weakening against the EUR if the news is sufficiently good to help stem outflows of capital from Greece and other parts of the Eurozone, but I believe this is unlikely. For the next few weeks at least, ahead of Greek elections, EUR/CHF is set to continue to cling to the 1.2000 floor, with the market set to test the SNB’s resolve.

Posted in Economics, FX, Switzerland. Tags: , , , , . Leave a Comment »
« Older posts
Newer posts »