February 2013 UK Forex and Foreign Exchange News Archive
Archived Daily Wealth Management News...
Yen firm as investors look to Italian bond sale
27 Feb at 9 AM
News Item Link: Yen firm as investors look to Italian bond sale
As investors look towards an auction of Italian bonds the yen has held against other major currencies. Recent elections in Italy have ended in a political stalemate and seen the country’s borrowing costs soar. If these costs remain high they could have a detrimental effect on the euro.
The dollar dropped 0.1 per cent against the Japanese...
Yen rises due to uncertainty in Tokyo
20 Feb at 9 AM
News Item Link: Yen rises due to uncertainty in Tokyo
The yen is up against the US dollar as analysts remain uncertain about just how aggressive the Japanese government will be in easing monetary policy. The greenback hit 93.55 yen on Wednesday, a fall of 0.1 per cent. The market is expecting the recent decline of the Japanese currency to slow as doubts remain as to whether the Bank of Japan...
Dollar drops against the yen
13 Feb at 12 PM
News Item Link: Dollar drops against the yen
Concerns over the effect Japan’s policy of monetary easing might have on exchange rates has put the yen at centre stage. The Group of Seven has expressed concerns although Japan’s finance minister Taro Aso has assured that the Bank of Japan’s policies are aimed at devaluation and not the global exchange markets.
Since last November...
Yen slumps against the euro and the dollar
6 Feb at 9 AM
News Item Link: Yen slumps against the euro and the dollar
The yen has hit its lowest level in 33 months against the euro and the US dollar as investors expect a new governor of the Bank of Japan to be more receptive to aggressive monetary easing. On Tuesday, current governor Masaaki Shirakawa announced he would be ending his term three weeks earlier than expected on 19 March.
A meeting next week...
GBP trims gains on USD on Irish referendum reports
29 Feb at 3 PM
News Item Link: GBP trims gains on USD on Irish referendum reports
The sterling trimmed gains against the dollar on Tuesday, amid reports of a looming Irish referendum on the European Union fiscal compact, although the pound remained supported before the European Central Bank’s liquidity operation, reports forex-rateit.com.
The GBP fell from its daily high of 1.5876 to hit 1.5826 in US morning trade,...
Profit taking leads to euro slide
28 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Profit taking leads to euro slide
The euro suffered modest losses in Tuesday in Asia, while the yen held tight to overnight gains before a further wave of cheap money from the European Central Bank which could boost risk appetite and pressurise the yen once more, reports Reuters.
News of Standard and Poor’s decision to reduce its Greek ratings to ‘selective default’,...
Yen down on US dollar
27 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Yen down on US dollar
The yen fell to a seventh-month low on the dollar in Asia, while the euro held firm as investors continued unwinding negative bets on the single currency before a fresh liquidity injection by the ECB, reports Reuters.
The yen, which has been pressurised since the Bank of Japan’s surprise easing earlier in February, fell to depths not...
Euro at two-and-a-half month high
24 Feb at 2 PM
News Item Link: Euro at two-and-a-half month high
The euro was at a two-and-a-half month high on Friday, keeping a hold of the hefty gains made a day earlier after data on improved business sentiment in Germany encouraged traders to cover their positions, reports Forex.
The euro rallied one per cent on Thursday, easily spiking above the Ichimoku cloud on the daily charts. It also breached...
Yen and pound pressured as euro remains resilient
23 Feb at 2 PM
News Item Link: Yen and pound pressured as euro remains resilient
The yen suffered losses in Asia today, having fallen to a seven-month low against the dollar, while the pound also endured a tough time after the Bank of England’s February policy meeting saw less change than expected, reports Reuters.
This helped the euro remain steady, even after Wednesday’s PMI surveys suggested that the eurozone...
Euro flat against dollar with Greek realities weighing
22 Feb at 10 AM
News Item Link: Euro flat against dollar with Greek realities weighing
The euro traded flat versus the dollar yesterday, after almost hitting a two-week high earlier, as investors turned their focus to the obstacles to implement a Greek bailout package and the implications it will have on the eurozone economy.
Reuters reported that eurozone finance ministers reached a deal on a 130bn euro bailout for Greece...
Euro rises as Greek deal looms but sentiment fragile
21 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Euro rises as Greek deal looms but sentiment fragile
The euro rose yesterday on expectations that the policymakers within the eurozone would approve a second bailout to Greece, although risks over implementing the agreement and a loose monetary policy outlook in the eurozone were predicted to cap the gains of the common currency, reports Reuters.
Analysts expected that the bailout deal,...
Hague says eurozone built with no exits
20 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Hague says eurozone built with no exits
Foreign Secretary William Hague has spoken about the problems which Greece will face if it opts to abandon the euro, reports the BBC.
Hague said that they must be prepared to act to prevent euros leaving the country, perhaps by introducing border controls. Eurozone finance ministers are set to discuss a bailout package of 130bn euros...
Euro rises on Greek hopes
17 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Euro rises on Greek hopes
The euro clung to through-the-night gains in Asia today, having gone up on the hopes that Greece was nearing agreeing a second bailout package, says Reuters.
Meanwhile, improved risk appetite saw the yen go down across the board. The euro stood at $1.3132, after it recovered from a three-week trough of around $1.2973. Traders said that any...
Shares slide on Greece woes
16 Feb at 9 AM
News Item Link: Shares slide on Greece woes
Stocks slumped yesterday in one of their poorest showings in 2012 as Greece continued its negotiations with other nations over a bailout, reports the New York Times.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell by 97.33 points (0.76 per cent) to finish the day at 12,780.95. It was the Dow’s biggest one-day decline to date this year, as it only...
Moodys cuts credit ratings of European nations
15 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Moodys cuts credit ratings of European nations
Ratings agency Moody’s has lowered the credit ratings of several eurozone nations including Portugal, Spain and Italy, reports the BBC.
The agency also downgraded Malta, Slovakia and Slovenia. Moody’s also put Britain, Austria and France on ‘negative outlook’ implying that there is a 30 per cent possibility of...
Ratings agency puts UK on negative outlook
14 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Ratings agency puts UK on negative outlook
The UK has been told its credit rating could be cut in the future, potentially raising borrowing costs, according to the BBC.
The Moody’s ratings agency released the statement after concerns about the eurozone crisis’s possible impact on the growth prospects of the UK. It put Britain on ‘negative outlook’, which implies there is a...
Brits look towards the dollar
13 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Brits look towards the dollar
An increasing number of UK expatriates are giving up on the sterling and the euro and looking at the UD dollar to provide more certainty with their savings.
Lloyds TSB International revealed that it has witnessed a significant increase in savers looking for dollar-denominated accounts. It has also now almost doubled the rate which it pays...
Pound up as euro remains steady
10 Feb at 10 AM
News Item Link: Pound up as euro remains steady
The sterling strengthened during European trading hours on Thursday following the announcement by the Bank of England of a £50bn expansion of its assets purchase programme, reports nasdaq.com.
As expected, the euro remained steady as investors awaited the latest news on the Greece bailout as well as a decision on interest rates and the...
Euro dips as Greece bailout not finalised
9 Feb at 9 AM
News Item Link: Euro dips as Greece bailout not finalised
The euro dropped from a two-month high today after Greece stopped short of signing a deal on austerity measures, but hopes that a deal can be agreed soon limited the damages, according to Reuters.
Lucas Papademos, the Greek prime minister, said that political leaders in Greece have agreed on every point of a bailout package bar one, on...
US dollar falls on Greek bailout optimism
8 Feb at 2 PM
News Item Link: US dollar falls on Greek bailout optimism
The US dollar lost ground on the majority of its major counterparts on Tuesday as investors acted on reports of a possible second bailout package for Greece, reports Forex.
During the late US trade session, the dollar lost ground on the euro, with the euro gaining 0.87 on the dollar to hit 1.3244. The rally in the single currency was...
Greek debt dominates Forex as GBP trims losses against USD
7 Feb at 4 PM
News Item Link: Greek debt dominates Forex as GBP trims losses against USD
As reported by Forexpros, the GB pound trimmed losses on Monday against the US dollar, which was supported by promising euro zone figures, but the sterling remained uncertain as worries over the Greek debt talks continued to dominate.
GBP/USD went from 1.5729, the lowest figure since February 1, and hit 1.5761 during the European afternoon...
Euro dips as Greek deal still not reached
6 Feb at 12 PM
News Item Link: Euro dips as Greek deal still not reached
The Euro has taken a hit today as a meeting between members of Greece’s coalition government failed to result in an agreement over tight austerity measures which would allow the EU and International Monetary Fund to hand over cash which the country could use to pay off its debtors. An agreement has to be made today of Greece wants 130...
Keeping pound has restrictions for Scottish independence
3 Feb at 12 PM
News Item Link: Keeping pound has restrictions for Scottish independence
An independent Scotland is likely to be more constrained economically, suggests a new study.
The National Institute of Economic and Social Research believes that keeping the pound is the “sensible” option, but that a currency union will impede fiscal policy, reports the BBC.
The Scottish government used the report to back up its...
Yen in focus as FOREX Dollar under pressure and risk appetite improves
2 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Yen in focus as FOREX Dollar under pressure and risk appetite improves
As reported by Reuters, the greenback battled against the yen on Thursday, having experienced a new three-month low for three straight days and heightening fears that Japan would act to weaken its currency. The dollar also lost its standing against commodity currencies and the euro as risk appetite improved after a series of Chinese...
Pound gains on the dollar again
1 Feb at 6 PM
News Item Link: Pound gains on the dollar again
The pound ascended to a 10-week high compared to the dollar on Tuesday, but more gains are limited due to concerns over Portugal’s debt woes.
The pound hit 1.5797 against the dollar in the morning, the highest since November 21; but consolidated at 1.5776, reports the website Forex Rate It.
Early gains were also made by the pound...