Welcome to the Financial News Network Options Report. On the call side, Central European Distribution calls are seeing a lot of activity today, currently at close to 8 times their average volume. Valassis Communications calls are near 7 times their average volume ahead of their quarterly earnings report this week. Lexmark calls are 5.5 times their normal volume despite missing EPS estimates this morning. Entropic Communications calls are also very active today, at 5 times their average volume. Finally, Cummins calls close out the list at close to 5 times their average volume after the company beat earnings estimates this morning. Taking a look at the put side of the ledger, Blackstone Group put are seeing a large amount of volume today, currently trading at over 13.5 times their average volume. Longtop Financial puts are over 10.5 times the average volume today. Shares of the company have also hit a 52-week low. Veeco Instruments puts are trading at 9 times their average volume, despite better than expected earnings results. Frontier Communications puts are very active today, currently trading at over 5 times their average volume. Finally, Boston Scientific puts close out the list at 5 times the average amount despite positive news from the FDA. This has been you daily options update from the Financial News Network. Stay tuned for more insight into where the big money is placing their bets each day.
4-26-11 MTS Video: In Front of the Fed
http://mrtopstep. om Tim Top Notch Haefke, Top Notch Trading – The SPM “finnally” got above the contract high at 1337.70 and is now pushing towards the lead month high of 1342.80 which was made by the MARCH contract.
Video Update on the S&P 500, Silver, Gold, Oil and US Dollar
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Citi Continues to Expand CitiFX Pro
New York, April 26, 2011 – Amid changes in the marketplace, Citi (NYSE: C) continues to expand the services of CitiFX Pro, its margin foreign exchange trading platform for small- to mid-sized institutions and experienced individual traders, and reaffirms its commitment to the margin FX market.
In 2011, CitiFX Pro plans to launch in other key European, Middle Eastern and Asian markets. In addition, CitiFX Pro plans to introduce a new FIX-API solution which will provide state-of-the art technology to sophisticated clients. This service will be available to clients in May 2011.
“We have been extremely pleased with the response to CitiFX Pro among small- and mid-sized institutions as well as experienced individual traders,” said Sanjay Madgavkar, Global Head of Margin Foreign Exchange Trading at Citi. “In order to meet growing demand from this important segment of the margin FX market, we are increasing our investment in the product, particularly in relation to technology. We expect our new API solution will offer market-leading, low-latency liquidity to active FX traders.”
Since its launch in 2008 in the United States, CitiFX Pro has expanded to new markets including the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Singapore and other Asian markets and has become one of the leading platforms in targeted segments of the FX market.
CitiFX Pro offers highly competitive spreads starting from 1.2 pips in the EURUSD for individual clients and provides its users access to both CitiFX Strategy and Technical reports—both of which consistently rank at the top of the market polls. Its platform was named Best Retail Platform by Profit & Loss magazine for the past two years running. Citi will soon be the only major bank offering Margin FX in the United States.
“With CitiFX Pro, we believe we have the right platform to service this important client segment”, said Jeff Feig, Citi’s Global Head of G10 Foreign Exchange. “Our latest investment shows our commitment to this growing market and will ensure CitiFX Pro will offer its clients the highest standards of technology and liquidity.”
About CitiFX Pro
CitiFX Pro is Citi’s online forex trading platform for active individual and small institutional clients including commodity trading advisors, broker-dealers, money managers, and hedge funds. Additional information may be found at www.citifxpro.com.
About Citi
Citi, the leading global financial services company, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Through Citicorp and Citi Holdings, Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services, and wealth management. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.
Auto Sector Earnings: Ford, AutoNation
Ford Motor Co. (F) reported first quarter earnings today that were well ahead of analyst expectations.
BRIC Nations Add New Member
By Sara Nunnally, Editor, Smart Investing Daily, taipanpublishinggroup.com
In mid-March, we heard from Smart Investing Daily reader C.L.V. who asked if South Africa should be considered part of the emerging market bloc of nations known as BRIC — Brazil, Russia, India and China.
I outlined some of the differences between South Africa and the BRIC nations, and concluded that from my perspective, South Africa should not be considered part of the BRIC bloc. Well, earlier this week, C.L.V. wrote in again to ask for our perspective on the recent gathering of BRIC nations…
And I might have to eat my words.
Thursday’s [April 14] BRICS Summit will likely focus on what the big emerging markets can do about high commodity prices, finalized by the usual joint statement on global governance signed by the nations’ leaders. It’ll be their third meeting. With each passing year, the ad-hoc group gets stronger economically and politically in world affairs.
It’s a motley crew, indeed, that’s going to meet Thursday in the south China resort city of Sanya. Brazil, Russia, India, China — and newcomer South Africa — are as diverse economically as they are culturally.
The group of BRIC nations invited South Africa to join their group late last year, and after their meeting last week, put out a statement in support of closer cooperation on things like food security and other commodity production.
Smart Investing Daily reader C.L.V. asks, “Who came out with what at the just ended BRIC gathering? Could you please break it down to the point of what its effects would have on global investments and its volumes? How is this going to affect the African, North American and European (ex UK) blocs?”
This is a massive question that will take far more than one Smart Investing Daily article to answer, but let’s start with an overview of what was talked about at the BRICS summit.
BRICS Summit
In brief, China and India agreed to reestablish defense ties and initiate closer border cooperation. China also agreed to deepen its “strategic partnership” with Russia, but there hasn’t been much elaboration on any specifics of this partnership. A Russian bank speaking at a financial forum held during (but separate from) the BRICS Summit hinted that it is considering issuing bonds denominated in yuan, selling them in Hong Kong.
The joint statements released after the summit point to continued exploration of nuclear power plants as part of an overall energy portfolio needed to support industrial growth.
They also announced an agreement to open lines of credit in their national currencies in order to dilute their overreliance on the U.S. dollar.
In my opinion, the biggest thing to come out of the summit was BRIC access to Africa via its newest member, South Africa. China and India already have a huge presence on the continent, and expanding ties with Africa’s largest economy — though beneficial to South Africa itself — could be more of a boon to BRIC nations in search of vast new quantities of commodities.
China’s been buying up interests in uranium projects in Namibia, along with shares of companies, over the past three years and more. China’s also been involved in oil exploration in Sudan. Russia has been trying to get into the oil markets in Angola and Nigeria.
India is China’s closest rival in the amount of investment it’s been doing in Africa, which is an interesting relationship, considering the history of Gandhi and South Africa. Just before the global financial crisis hit, India lost some lucrative oil contracts to China.
And in early 2010, Brazil’s Vale S.A. (VALE:NYSE) announced it would expand into Mozambique. But trade between Brazil and Africa has seen huge growth. Between 2000 and 2008, trade jumped from $3 billion to $18.5 billion.
The BRIC nations will gain most from this new partnership with South Africa, certainly.
But here’s another aspect of the BRICS joining economic forces…
The group — including South Africa — accounts for over 40% of the world’s population, but only 18% of its GDP in 2010. But this could change very rapidly, even if South Africa isn’t included.
The IMF says that BRIC nations will account for 21.6% of the world’s GDP by 2015. A significant increase, but it could be just the tip of the iceberg. The International Business Times reports that BRIC nations are expected to represent 47% of the world’s GDP by 2030.
That’s huge growth, though investors should take it with a grain of sand — the research came from the China Center for International Economic Exchanges.
And yet, the fastest growth we’ve seen has come from BRIC nations as developed economies continue to struggle into recovery mode.
(Investing doesn’t have to be complicated. Sign up for Smart Investing Daily and let me and my fellow editor Jared Levy simplify the stock market for you with our easy-to-understand investment articles.)
From an investment standpoint, we could see a number of BRIC-based companies make forays into Africa, and as commodity prices continue to rise, even smaller projects could be profitable — or at least “purchase-able.”
Continue to look for China to snap up bits and pieces of key energy projects, and keep an ear to the ground for any Russian interest in oil exploration.
But be careful — the smaller projects can change hands pretty quickly, so you might want to consider these types of investments highly risky. A quick Internet search will bring up tons of information on specific mining and exploration projects and who’s involved, so it might be tempting to see these projects as bigger than they really are.
From the brief research I’ve done so far, most Western companies involved are big companies, which would be little influenced by smaller projects in Africa.
It could be, though, that BRIC countries will shoulder out Western companies of some concessions, but we don’t quite know yet how that would affect access to sought-after commodities.
Again, this topic is far too complex to break down in a single article, and we’ll more than likely come back to this issue as investment perspectives come into play.
Overall, to me, it makes sense that BRIC nations are inviting South Africa into their group… It’s a big stepping-stone into the continent. From a strict economically based perspective, I just don’t get it.
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About the Author
Sara is Managing Editor of Smart Investing Daily. As Senior Research Director and global correspondent, Sara Nunnally’s diverse resume includes studies in art history, computer science and financial research. She has appeared on news media such as Forbes on Fox, Fox News Live, and CNBC’s Squawk Box, as well as numerous radio shows around the country. Most recently, Sara co-authored a book with Sandy Franks called, Barbarians of Wealth.
As Senior Research Director, global correspondent and managing editor of Smart Investing Daily, Sara has traveled all over the world in search of the best investment opportunities to recommend to her readers, be they in developed economies like France and Italy, in emerging markets like the Czech Republic and Poland, or in frontier terrain like Vietnam and Morocco. Her unique “holistic” approach of boots-on-the-ground research has given her an edge in today’s financial marketplace as she searches for the next investment opportunities in hot sectors like alternative energy, currency markets and commodities.
The Senior Strategist: The market will slowly grow nervous
In spite of last weeks bad news investors were quite confortable with taking risks during easter. New worries are however likely to affect the market this week, says seniorstrategist Ib Fredslund Madsen.
Video courtesy of en.jyskebank.tv
Turkey Pressured to Hike Rates or See TRY Depreciate
By Greg Holden
Last week’s statement by Goldman Sachs that the Turkish lira (TRY) will come under selling pressure if the Turkish central bank doesn’t hikes rates has begun to see results. Advising its clients to hold long positions on the USD/TRY, Goldman Sachs’ strategy appears to be creeping across the forex world and the pair has indeed moved bullish since Friday.
The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey is scheduled to meet this Thursday to discuss its monetary policy and bank regulations. Goldman doesn’t expect the bank to hike its rates beyond their current 6.25%, nor to adjust capital requirements for its banks.
As a result, many are joining the chorus and recommending long positions against the lira as part of their short- and mid-term portfolio. Should the central bank raise rates, the TRY’s strength may return. But for now a downturn is expected.
Turkey has always battled with what world it belongs to, the Middle East or Europe. With the growth prospects in Europe and the recent rate hike by the ECB, Turkey would need to follow suit to keep pace with its northerly neighbors. But the Middle East is in turmoil and the region’s currencies are under significant pressure. To keep its goods competitive with its southerly neighbors a weakened currency will be required.
This Thursday’s meeting will be a clash between those who view Turkey a part of Europe and those who view it as a part of the Middle East. With Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan leaning towards its Arab neighbors to the south, a Turkish policy in favor of holding rates steady and weakening its currency may be expected, thus depreciating the TRY over the next several weeks.
Forex Market Analysis provided by ForexYard.
© 2006 by FxYard Ltd
Disclaimer: Trading Foreign Exchange carries a high level of risk and may not be suitable for all investors. There is a possibility that you could sustain a loss of all of your investment and therefore you should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. You should be aware of all the risks associated with Foreign Exchange trading.
Forex CT 26-4-11 – Video Fx News
Video courtesy of ForexCT – A leading Australian forex broker, liscensed by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission, offers the MetaTrader4 and PROfit Platform to retail traders. Other services include Segregated Accounts, Trading workshops, Tutorials, and Commodities trading.
EUR/USD Anticipating Reversal?
Source: ForexYard
As most investors eye Wednesday’s monetary policy meeting by the US Federal Reserve, the possibility exists for the Fed to view the latest string of economic reports, particularly from the housing market, as a signal to release a hawkish assessment of the American economy. Consumer confidence has also risen lately and traders appear to be anticipating an uptick by the greenback against its Atlantic rival this week.
Economic News
USD – USD Hesitant Prior to Week’s Fed Meeting
The US dollar has found itself in a position to rebound strongly in the days ahead if this week’s policy meeting by the Federal Reserve produces a hawkish assessment. Most reports released at the end of last week had begun to call for a fast-paced injection of trading volume, deemed almost certainly to go towards the euro instead of the buck.
However, the beleaguered currency seems to have caught a break with China delaying its monetary revaluation and with a minor shift in fundamentals. Considering the series of negative reports to have piled atop the greenback over the past month-and-a-half, much of the bearish pressure has likely already been priced-in by investors. As such, the Fed should see numerous reasons to be optimistic moving ahead, though the national deficit remains an appalling concern.
As for today’s trading, the global economy exits its holiday break and reenters the market full bore. This liquidity injection should make trading interesting today as the weekend’s flat trading period gets reevaluated by well rested eyes. The Conference Board (CB) will be publishing its consumer confidence report today at 15:00 GMT, with an expectation to rise somewhat from last month – adding weight to the potential for hawkishness from the Fed. Traders may want to anticipate the bull run on the USD should fundamentals shift as expected.
EUR – EUR-Traders Anticipating Return of Euro Zone Liquidity
The euro has been experiencing relatively flat results against most of its currency rivals as the region was on holiday in observance of Easter. The EUR/USD has held relatively stable as of Friday and did not appear to have momentum in either direction until this morning. Traders have viewed the return of liquidity with optimism as markets should provide clearer direction this week, though not necessarily as expected from Friday.
The euro zone continues to grapple with its sovereign debt woes, but some movement in risk appetite has helped push the EUR mildly higher by the start of this week against most of its currency rivals. The speculation of a move by China to revalue its currency had also convinced many that a broad sell-off in the USD would take place early this week, but rumors are spreading that this move may get delayed, helping the USD hold its ground against losses.
As most investors eye Wednesday’s monetary policy meeting by the US Federal Reserve, the possibility exists for the Fed to view the latest string of economic reports, particularly from the housing market, as a signal to release a hawkish assessment of the American economy. Consumer confidence has also risen lately and traders appear to be anticipating an uptick by the greenback against its Atlantic rival this week.
As for today’s trading, the euro zone may have returned to actively engaging the market, but no reports are expected today, meaning the USD may actually take the reins and guide the market. Traders will want to pay attention to the 15:00 GMT release of the CB Consumer Confidence report out of the US as it is the most impactful event on today’s calendar.
JPY – JPY in Decline as US Bond Yields Rise
The Japanese yen slumped against its major counterparts in early Asian deals on Monday as US bond yields rose ahead of today’s auction of $35 billion in two-year debt. Investor concern that the recent S&P downgrade of US debt outlook will push up borrowing costs likely played into this sell-off in JPY, but this week’s monetary policy meeting by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) also influenced much of the recent movements.
Growing concerns regarding Japan have driven the JPY lower recently amid deteriorating fundamentals out of the island economy. However, yesterday’s all industries index experienced a 0.7% rise, beating out forecasts and helping add to the recent atmosphere of market optimism. For today traders will want to look to the USD for market direction but the JPY’s current momentum shift appears to be dominant. This means going short on the yen may continue to remain appealing in the short-term.
Crude Oil – Price of Oil Dips as Saudi Arabia’s Aramco Expresses Concern
The price for a barrel of Crude Oil took a dip yesterday after the CEO of Aramco, Khalid al-Falih, stated his concern for the impact high oil prices would have on the global economy. His remarks came during an industry gathering in South Korea and the impact of such a sentiment rippled across the oil market rapidly with prices slipping below $112 a barrel on Tuesday morning.
Soaring oil price gains have been remarked upon by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), US President Barack Obama and now by a leading oil producer and exporter Aramco, all of whom have stated that the current price is an aberration from current levels of supply and demand and may carry detrimental effects onto the world’s economic recovery. Whether such warnings will come soon enough to push prices back down is yet to be seen, but these latest remarks appear to have made an impact, no matter how small it may have been.
Technical News
EUR/USD
Ever since the EUR/USD pair peaked at the 1.4650 level it has begun slightly correcting downwards, and is currently trading near the 1.4530 level. On the 4-hour chart, both the Slow Stochastic and the MACD are providing bearish crosses, suggesting that the bearish correction may proceed today. Going short with tight stops seems to be the right strategy today.
GBP/USD
The GBP/USD pair is currently in the midst of a bearish correction and has fallen about 150 pips during the past few days. In addition, as all oscillators on the 4-hour chart are providing bearish indications, it seems that the cable might slide further, with potential to reach the 1.6350 level.
USD/JPY
There is a very accurate bearish channel formed on the 4-hour chart, as the pair is currently floating in the middle of it. The MACD and the RSI on both the 4-hour and the 1-day charts are suggesting that the bearish move has more room to go. Going short appears to be the right choice today.
USD/CHF
The USD/CHF continues to slide and is now trading near the 0.8840 level. Nevertheless, as a bullish cross takes place on both the 4-hour chart’s Slow Stochastic and MACD, it seems that a bullish correction might take place today, with a key-target level of 0.8920.
The Wild Card
Gold
After breaking an all-time record high of $1,518 an ounce, it appears that a technical correction has been initiated, and gold is currently trading near the $1,500 level. In addition, as all the oscillators on the 4-hour chart are pointing down, it seems that another bearish session might take place today, providing a great opportunity for forex traders to join a very popular trend.
Forex Market Analysis provided by ForexYard.
© 2006 by FxYard Ltd
Disclaimer: Trading Foreign Exchange carries a high level of risk and may not be suitable for all investors. There is a possibility that you could sustain a loss of all of your investment and therefore you should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. You should be aware of all the risks associated with Foreign Exchange trading.
