What To Watch This Week

March 13, 2010 — Mitul Kotecha

A “crisis over” mode is being adopted across markets as worries about Greece wane and economic data provides support to recovery hopes, whilst importantly allaying fears of a “double-dip”. Equities, bonds and currencies are reacting accordingly; equities are close to year highs, bond yields have risen and spreads have narrowed, whilst the USD and JPY are weaker, and conversely risk currencies are stronger. Even EUR/USD pushed higher on its way to 1.3800 as a number of stops were cleared and shorts were squeezed.

The coming weeks will be important to determine whether there is any staying power in the upward move in risk assets. A lot of the February data in the US will likely be obscured by bad weather however, including industrial production figures this week, leaving markets with little to go on. In Europe, the key release is the March German ZEW investor confidence survey, and better news in Greece, will likely prevent a sharper decline in confidence.

After both the Swish National Bank (SNB) and Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) unsurprisingly left policy unchanged last week this week sees the turn of the US Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan (BoJ). Neither central bank is likely to shift policy but the Fed statement will be looked upon for guidance on the timing of rate hikes. The comment in the FOMC statement that the Fed Funds rate is expected to remain low for an “extended period” is set to be retained, even if some FOMC members are itching to remove it soon.

The BoJ meeting will be particularly interesting. I have just returned from a week long trip in Japan and on the ground there is plenty of speculation that the BoJ will take extra action to combat deflation and weaken the JPY. Additionally comments by Japan’s Prime Minister and Deputy PM have highlighted the potential for action to weaken the JPY although the usual market hesitation to sell JPY into fiscal year end and repatriation talk may mean a weaker JPY path is not straightforward.

Greece will not move too far from the spotlight, with EU officials likely to give the official stamp of approval on Greece’s deficit cutting measures and plenty of discussion at the Eurogroup Finance Minister’s meeting and Ecofin meeting early in the week. Moreover, weekend press reports suggest that a bailout up to EUR 25 billion is close to being agreed. Other topics of conversation will include the possible formation of a European Monetary Fund, though this looks like it will be a non-starter given the many objections to it.

Overall, risk appetite is set to continue its upward trajectory, likely keeping the USD on the back foot. Some deterioration in USD sentiment was reflected in the fact that net long aggregate USD speculation positioning has turned negative again according to the latest CFTC Commitment of Traders (IMM) report. Much in terms of FX direction will depend on what the FOMC says rather than does tomorrow.

EUR/USD may take a crack at resistance around 1.3840 on improving Greek news but it is difficult to see much upside from current levels. The one to watch will be the JPY, especially if the BoJ embarks on aggressive actions at this week’s meeting, leaving USD/JPY plenty of scope to test resistance around 92.16.

Posted in Bond markets, central banks, Currencies, Economics, Economy, equity markets, Europe, Federal Reserve, Financial crisis, Fiscal/Budget, FX, Germany, Greece, Interest rates, Japan, Monetary Policy, US. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Is EUR/USD Parity Inevitable?

February 26, 2010 — Mitul Kotecha

Reading this article in the WSJ “Hedge Funds Try ‘Career Trade’ Against Euro“, it would seem that there is an increasing amount of investors, especially hedge funds, looking for the EUR to fall to parity against the USD.  It is hard to believe that only a few months ago it looked as though the EUR was heading back towards its previous highs around 1.60 hit in April 2008. 

Following the surge in the USD during the financial crisis EUR/USD dropped to below 1.25 in November 2008 and then managed to eek out some gains as risk appetite improved and the USD came under pressure during most of 2009.

The picture towards the end of 2009 reversed as initially investors covered short USD positions and then bought USDs on rising risk aversion and growing problems in Greece.  The trend looks well set now and a move even lower beckons for EUR/USD.  

So how low will it go?  It is tempting to say that record short speculative positioning in EUR/USD means that the market is already stretched and like an elastic band pulled too far the EUR could rebound sharply.  On the other hand the band could also snap and in the case of EUR/USD this would imply a collapse in the currency as other investors join the bandwagon of selling EUR.

It is difficult to see any quick resolution to the problems in Europe at present.  Growing social/ labour unrest in the wake of austerity measures to cut burgeoning fiscal deficits highlight that implementing budget cuts mean tough political choices.   Greece has borne the brunt of this unrest but it appears to be spreading across Europe.   

In the past countries could devalue their way out of their debt problems but this solution is not available to individual countries in the eurozone.  Another option is to inflate your way out of the debt but again this is something that the European Central Bank (ECB) will not tolerate and could do much greater long term damage.  

So the only viable solution is to cut spending, raise taxes, implement reforms and raise retirement ages, all of which will fuel plenty of tensions in the countries concerned.  The difficulty of raising taxes was highlighted by the fact that even Greek tax inspectors have gone on strike, a fact which makes a mockery out of the government’s plans.  

Assuming that austerity measures are actually carried out it will mean that growth in Greece and many of the other bigger countries in Europe that carry out these measures will weaken further, making a “double-dip” scenario for the eurozone economy more likely.  

The bottom line is that it is extremely difficult to see the EUR make a sustainable recovery against this background.  Yes, the market is positioned short but so what? We may see short positioning increase further before any stability in the EUR is achieved.   

The last time EUR/USD was at parity was in December 2002.  Given the lack of alternatives in Europe at present another test of parity does not look as inconceivable as it did only a few months ago.

Posted in central banks, Currencies, Economics, Economy, Europe, Financial crisis, Fiscal/Budget, FX, Germany, Greece, Monetary Policy. Tags: , , , , , , , . 1 Comment »

PIIGS fears fuelling risk aversion

January 29, 2010 — Mitul Kotecha

Risk aversion has come back with a vengeance over the last 10 days driven by a host of concerns that continue to damage market sentiment. As has been evident over the past year the USD and JPY remain the best currency plays against the background of rising risk aversion and both currencies look well supported.

Market concerns are not going away quickly but some of the fears plaguing markets have at least receded especially on the US political front, with Obama’s State of the Union address, Geithner’s testimony on AIG and Bernanke’s reappointment all passing without too much incident, at least from a market perspective. I still believe that market fears are overblown but it is clearly evident that the market is not in the mood to concur. More pain is likely in the weeks ahead.

Euro-sovereign spreads continue to suffer from the ongoing Greek saga whilst the other major fear remains further monetary tightening in China. Rumours that China is about to imminently revalue the CNY are also running rife. The bigger than expected hike in the reserve ratio in India reflects the fact that Asia is on a faster track to tighten policy than Western economies.

As regular readers probably noticed, my articles on econometer.org have been sporadic recently. This is due to the fact that I have been on the road for the last two weeks giving client seminars across several countries in Asia. Without giving too much away it is evident that pessimism is pervasive and most investors I polled are looking for a “W” or “double dip” profile for economic growth in the G7 economies over coming months. Hardly anyone looked for a “V”.

The other casualty emanating from Greece’s woes, as well as worries that other European PIIGS (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, Spain) face ratings downgrades, is the EUR. EUR/USD slipped below the psychologically important level of 1.40 this week and is showing no sign of turning around. Warnings by S&P ratings that Portugal faces challenges on the fiscal front show that these sovereign concerns will be with us for a long while yet.

After letting investors believe that the European Commission would offer no support for Greece, there appears to be a growing realization that Greece is not simply a local problem but a Euro wide problem, as noted by European Commission President Barroso. Whilst this may be good for Greek debt the path to recovery is still likely to be a massively painful one, and the EUR may gain little support from this news.

The UK has not escaped the clutches of ratings agencies and warnings by S&P that UK banks are no longer among the “most stable and low-risk” in the world highlights the headwinds faced by GBP at present. The weaker than expected out-turn for Q4 GDP (0.1%) highlights the fact that UK economic recovery is fragile, which in turn plays negatively for the banking sector. This news has put a break on GBP but there appears to be plenty of demand for GBP above 1.600 vs USD.

Posted in Asia, Bond markets, central banks, China, Currencies, Economics, Economy, emerging markets, Europe, Financial crisis, Fiscal/Budget, FX, Greece, India, Interest rates, Monetary Policy, US. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Addicted to the medicine

September 7, 2009 — Mitul Kotecha

It comes as a relief to markets that G20 officials have agreed it is too early to begin withdrawing massive fiscal, monetary and financial support.   However, it is hardly surprising that officials are not formulating an early exit from emergency measures especially given the ongoing uncertainty about the pace and shape of global economic recovery.  

The latest US jobs report did not help clarify the outlook for markets as a smaller than forecast drop in employment in August (-216k) weighed against a surprise jump in the unemployment rate to a 26-year high of 9.7% and downward revisions to past months employment data.

There is a growing possibility that the Fed’s expectation the unemployment rate will breach 10% by the end of the year looks may be hit even earlier.  Fears about a “jobless recovery” will likely increase as a lack of hiring is set to persist for some time yet. 

The absence of any near term reversal of stimulus measures reduces the risk of a “double dip” recession but at some point there has to be a reckoning. Fiscal positions have blown out for many countries and will eventually require spending cuts, higher taxes and/or privatisation in addition to likely increases in the retirement ages for workers, to rectify them. It is questionable how sustainable recovery will be once such measures begin to be implemented.

In the meantime, it is not even evident that policy is working efficiently. Arguably yields on bonds and corporate debt are lower than they would otherwise have been had it not been for central bank actions but lenders are still not passing the additional liquidity to consumers and households against the background of fears about a rising tide of bad loans and delinquencies.

I would compare this to a patient who came close to death and has finally come off life support as the worst passed but has relied on support in the form of various strong medicines to keep him (or her) going.  The risk that the patient has become overly dependent on the drugs has grown but it is highly unclear how he will fare once he is weaned off.  

Fears about the ability of the patient to stand on his own two feet will increase.  The risk that the patient will relapse is intensifying but his ability to pay for more medicine is already diminishing and his options are running out quickly.

Posted in Bond markets, central banks, Economics, Economy, Financial crisis, Monetary Policy, US. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment »
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