FOREX FLASH
SWISSIE TO RALLY FURTHER DESPITE SNB
Currency forecasters said that currency speculators are betting that the recent slide in the euro will hinder the Swiss National Bank’s (SNB) campaign to slow the rallying Swiss franc. Swiss central bank president Philippe Hildebrand has found it difficult to bring the Swissie’s appreciation under control as investors seeking a safe haven from the Eurozone turmoil have piled into the franc. Price moves indicate the SNB has intervened four times since Hildebrand took office on 1 January.
ARGENTINA’S PESO SLUMPS TO LOW
Argentina’s peso fell yesterday to an all-time low of 3.8613 pesos per dollar amid speculation that the government will push the currency weaker in order to boost tax revenue from commodity exports. Argentinian president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner faces funding requirements of $11.4bn this year compared to just $10.7bn in 2009. The central bank has already sold dollar futures contracts this month.
DOLLAR INDEX TO HIT NINE-MONTH HIGH
The trade-weighted dollar index may reach a nine-month high as two moving averages are on course to cross paths, ANZ bank said yesterday. The 55-day moving average climbs toward the 200-day moving average, which tends to signify an upward trend for the currency in question. It may rise as far as 82.66, which is near the 38.2 per cent Fibonacci retracement of the index’s move from its 2008 low of 70.698 to its 2009 high of 89.624.
STERLING SUFFERS AS EURO REBOUNDS
The pound lost ground against the single currency yesterday as renewed optimism saw investors reduce their short positions in the euro. Some analysts now believe that the recent beating of the euro has gone too far and that we may see short positions being squeezed. The pound had risen slightly earlier in the day after UK consumer prices index data came in at 3.5 per cent, well above the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target.
WORTHY DEBT BOOSTS MEXICAN PESO
The Mexican peso has enjoyed a four-day rin higher on the back of speculation that the country’s bonds will be included in Citgroup’s World Government Bond Index, which should attract more investors to Mexico’s fixed-income securities. The peso rose 0.4 per cent to 12.8830 per US dollar during American trading yesterday and the currency is the second best performer in a basket of 26 most actively traded emerging market currencies.
POLISH ZLOTY IS CURRENTLY UNDERVALUED
The Polish zloty is undervalued, one of the country’s top central bankers said yesterday. Newly appointed Monetary Policy Committee member Adam Glapinski told TVN?CNBC: “The zloty is undervalued, but the market is shallow, which makes it susceptible to volatility.” However, he refused to give a specific target figure for any appreciation. The Polish currency strengthened immediately following his comments. The currency has strengthened 23 per cent from its five-year low on 17 February 2009. Poland was the only European Union country to avoid a contraction during the global recession.