Euro to Canadian Dollar (EUR/CAD) Exchange Rate Forecast to Trend within Narrow Rangeon Oil Prices

The Euro to Canadian Dollar (EUR/CAD) exchange rate was trending within a limited range on Wednesday afternoon. 

As tensions between Greece and the Eurogroup mount, the shared currency softened versus the majority of its most traded currency rivals. Additional declination is as a result of less-than-impressive Eurozone construction output.
The Canadian Dollar, meanwhile, softened versus nearly all of its major peers thanks to declination in the crude market. With demand cooling and supply rising, prices are expected to drop below $50 a barrel again.
The Euro to Canadian Dollar (EUR/CAD) exchange rate is currently trending in the region of 1.4128.

Euro (EUR) Exchange Rate Softens on Grexit Potential

The common currency softened on Wednesday after Tuesday’s Eurogroup meeting failed to find a utilitarian resolution to Greece’s debt crisis. Fears that they will be unable to agree on a compromise has seen trader confidence cool with regards to Euro investment.
‘If we want to avoid going into unknown territory, the only way is to have some time and some tranquility,’ French Finance Minister Michel Sapin told reporters in Brussels Tuesday. ‘That means the prolongation of the program. It’s the only legal tool available.’

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Euro Exchange Rate Forecast: EUR/GBP, EUR/USD, EUR/NZD, EUR/JPY, EUR/CHF – ZEW Swiss Expectations Tumbles to Historical Low

The Euro to British Pound (EUR/GBP), Euro to US Dollar (EUR/USD), Euro to New Zealand Dollar (EUR/NZD) and Euro to Japanese Yen (EUR/JPY) exchange rates all softened early in Wednesday’s European trading while the Euro to Swiss Franc (EUR/CHF) exchange rate recorded gains.
The Euro to British Pound (EUR/GBP) exchange rate took a rather significant dive when UK employment data beat economists’ forecasts and offered hope that the UK economic recovery is progressing strongly despite rumours of a slowdown.
UK Jobless Claims Change was expected to show a -25.0K reduction in jobseekers in January after December’s -29.7K improvement; however, the actual ecostat managed to surge at -38.6K. In addition, Employment Change rocketed to 103K in the three months through December, doubling forecasts of 50K.
The jump in employment saw the UK Unemployment Rate decline from 5.8% to 5.7% in the last three months of 2014 and Average Weekly Earnings finally recorded some substantial progress, rising from a positively revised 1.8% to 2.1%.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar could be in for some movement on Wednesday with the release of MBA Mortgage Applications, Building Permits and Housing Starts stats data.
Tuesday was a poor day for US domestic data when the NAHB Housing Market Index declined from 57 to 55 in February—a surprise turn of events considering economists had forecast a rise to 58.
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PHL financial markets close for Chinese New Year

Philippine financial markets are closed Thursday for the Lunar New Year, after Malacañang declared Feb. 19 a special nonworking holiday.

 

Financial markets in China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea are also closed.

 

On Wednesday, the PSEi closed to its 13th record high of 7,803.45 and after touching a new intraday high of 7,840.39.

Meanwhile, the peso inched higher to 44.235:$1 .from 44.245:$1.

 

Analysts said 

Philippines markets are expected to catch up with developments in foreign markets when trading resumes on Friday, a day after the US Federal Reserve would have released the minutes of its January meeting.

 

Yields on short-term US Treasuries fell by the most since August 2011 after minutes of the Federal Reserve's last meeting showed "many" members wanted to keep rates near zero for longer, Reuters reported. – Danessa O. Rivera/VS, GMA News

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Revisiting Nigeria’s Exchange Rate Management System

Following the perennial weakening of the naira, Obinna Chima wonders if the current exchange rate regime in Nigeria can support macroeconomic growth and incentivise foreign investors to hold Nigerian assets

The strong gyration in the Nigerian currency market in the past few days obviously got investors alarmed.  The apparent chaos in the market, which saw the value of the naira against the US dollar dropping to a historic low at the interbank segment of the market has also created a lot of anxiety in the system.

Specifically, the naira fell to around N205 to a dollar at the interbank segment of the foreign exchange market last week, despite several interventions by the central bank, as investors continued to weigh the effect of the polls’ shift on the economy.

As a result of the sustained depreciation of the naira, most financial market analysts have been predicting the likelihood of further devaluation of the currency by the central bank.

It was also learnt that most foreign investors have chosen to remain on the sidelines because of election-related uncertainties.

Indeed, exchange rate management in Nigeria have undergone significant changes over the past five decades.

In Nigeria, maintaining a realistic exchange rate for the naira is very crucial, given the structure of the economy, and the need to minimise distortions in production and consumption, increase the inflow of non-oil export receipts and attract foreign direct investment.

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Free Custom Pivot Point Indicator - Receive Our Free MetaTrader 4 Custom Indicator when you subscribe to our Weekly Newsletter AUDUSD: Forex Technical Analysis February 17, 2015

We would like to draw your attention to AUD/USD currency pair on the H4 chart. US financial markets were closed yesterday in observance of Presidents’ Day. Today the trading is performed on a regular basis, but there is no special US macroeconomic statistics released today. Monetary policy meeting minutes were published early this morning by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). We deem that no significant information was announced; anyway this was precisely what has pushed the Aussie higher. According to previous surveys, more than 60% of investors expected the RBA to cut again the rate to 2% at the next meeting scheduled on the third of March. In our opinion, it is now difficult to state certainly whether it happens or not. Especially that the most important Australian economic data will be released only on the second of March, just before the RBA meeting, and before that less significant statistics will be published. The lower the probability of a rate cut, the more chances has the Australian dollar to strengthen.

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China needs forex reforms in response to strong US dollar

As the American economy recovers and the Federal Reserve curtails its quantitative easing program, the US dollar is expected to continue to get stronger. Reinforcing the trend will be monetary easing measures by central banks in Europe, Japan and several other countries.
A strong dollar will create more volatility in global markets, cause crises in emerging economies and pose challenges for China's foreign exchange reforms. Therefore, a major challenge for Chinese authorities this year will be how to speed up and deepen reforms of its foreign exchange market and introduce liberalization at a time when the greenback is strong.
The European Central Bank's recent introduction of its own QE program has weighed on the yuan, which has nearly fallen by the maximum 2% in four foreign exchange trading sessions since Jan. 26. Unlike the decline of the yuan in February 2014, which was driven by the Chinese central bank's move to cut the yuan's daily mid-point price, the Chinese currency is set to experience a longer downturn against the greenback.
China's current foreign exchange market, which was established after the 2005 reforms, was built on a floating rate regulated by the mid-point price of the yuan against a basket of foreign currencies. But the yuan's rates have been decided mainly by its movement against the US dollar. The fact that the greenback is the major currency in the global market and has been weak has not only prevented the flaws of this system from becoming big problems but also made Chinese products more competitive internationally. 

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Lincoln Electric Reports Fourth Quarter And Full Year 2014 Results

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (the "Company") (Nasdaq: LECO) today reported fourth quarter 2014 net income of $75.2 million, or $0.96 per diluted share.  This compares with net income of $88.3 million, or $1.07 per diluted share, in the comparable 2013 period.  Adjusted net income in the fourth quarter 2014 was $75.4 million, or $0.96 per diluted share, compared with adjusted net income of $89.2 million, or $1.09 per diluted share, in the comparable 2013 period.  The 2013 period includes a benefit of $0.22 per diluted share from our Venezuelan operations, which operates in a hyper-inflationary environment.  This compares with no contribution to Adjusted net income from our Venezuelan operations in the fourth quarter 2014.

Sales decreased 4.3% to $684.0 million in the fourth quarter 2014 versus $714.8 million in the comparable 2013 period primarily due to unfavorable foreign currency translation and volume weakness in our South America Welding segment.  Operating income for the fourth quarter decreased 11.8% to $104.9 million, or 15.3% of sales, from $118.9 million, or 16.6% of sales, in the comparable 2013 period.  Adjusted operating income decreased 12.3% to $105.1 million or 15.4% of sales, compared with $119.9 million, or 16.8% of sales in 2013.  Lower 2014 operating income results primarily reflect a challenging year-over-year comparison in our South America Welding segment due to contraction in our Venezuelan operations. 

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INR to USD forex rates today: Rupee down 10 paise against dollar in early trade

Mumbai, Feb 18:  The rupee depreciated by 10 paise to 62.26 against the dollar in early trade today at the Interbank Foreign Exchange due to appreciation of the US currency overseas. Increased demand for the dollar from importers also put pressure on the rupee. Forex dealers attributed the rupee’s fall to the dollar’s gains against other currencies overseas but a higher opening of the domestic equity market, capped the losses.

The rupee had gained three paise to close at 62.16 against the dollar on Monday following continued selling of the US currency by banks and exporters. Forex market remained closed yesterday on account of ‘Mahashivratri’.

 

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Naira Hits N210/N213 to Dollar at Bureau De Change & Black Market

The Naira on Monday lost N2 to the dollar to sell at N210 at the Bureau De Change (BDCs) segment of the official market.

It also depreciated by N4 at the black market, selling at N213 to the dollar.

A dealer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the depreciation might not be unconnected with the closure of trading at the interbank market by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The dealer also said that the CBN’s decision which was meant to control speculations in the market might be responsible for the depreciation.

NAN reports that the Naira against the pound at the BDCs and black market sold for N307 and N314 respectively.

It, however, exchanged against the Euro at N235 at the BDCs, while it sold for N237 at the black market.

NAN recalls that CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, said that only BDCs and banks with genuine demand for foreign exchange will get forex allocation.

The CBN on Jan. 28 put up measures to calm the strong volatility observed in the forex market to save the naira from further depreciation.

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Georgia sees decrease in remittances

The volume of remittances stood at $75.5 million in January 2015, which is almost 25 percent lower than the same period in 2014, the National Bank of Georgia reported.
The first month of 2015 saw a 23.3 percent drop or $23 million in total amount of international money transfers, the bank added.
The bank said while nine big donor countries made up 89.6 percent of the total volume of money transfers in January 2014, the figure dropped to 87 percent this year.
Meanwhile, nearly $12.5 million was transferred from Georgia in January 2015, being as same as the amount transferred in January last year.

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Forex Market: EUR/GBP daily trading forecast

Yesterday’s trade saw EUR/GBP within the range of 0.7374-0.7429. The pair closed at 0.7390, down 0.14% on a daily basis, which marked a third consecutive daily loss.
At 7:16 GMT today EUR/GBP was up 0.03% for the day to trade at 0.7392. The pair touched a daily high at 0.7395 during early Asian trade.

Fundamentals

Euro area

Economic Sentiment by the ZEW

The gauge of economic sentiment in Germany probably improved to 55.0 in February, according to the median forecast by experts, from 48.4 in January. If so, this would be the highest index reading since February 2014, when it was reported at 55.7.
In October last year the index entered into negative territory for the first time since November 2012, slipping to -3.6.
The ZEW (Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung) economic expectations index is published on a monthly basis. The study encompasses up to 350 financial and economic analysts. The indicator reflects the difference between the share of analysts, that are optimistic and those, that are pessimistic about the expected economic development in Germany over the next six months. A positive value indicates that the proportion of optimists is larger than that of pessimists. A ZEW reading of -100 suggests that all analysts are pessimistic about the current developments and expect economic conditions to deteriorate. A ZEW reading of 100 implies that all analysts are optimistic about the current situation and expect conditions to improve. A ZEW reading of 0 indicates neutrality.

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Brent Sheather: You can trade your way over the fx cliff

There is a popular belief that lemmings (rodents with sharp teeth from the Arctic) regularly jump off cliffs to their death. Unfortunately for this story it's a misconception - lemmings don't do that - not on purpose anyway. However in the true spirit of financial journalism we will not let that fact get in the way of a good story therefore we will draw a parallel to lemming-like behaviour in the investment world.
It's called foreign exchange trading. Whilst fx trading is regularly promoted as a get rich quick scheme with numerous testimonials from individuals who have been able to leave their jobs and "trade successfully" the reality is, surprise, quite different. Of course anyone with half a brain and ten minutes to research the subject would discover that there is no free lunch, in fact, as one LA Times reporter put it, "foreign currency trading is easy - an easy way to lose money".

However the existence of big companies in NZ, Australia and globally serving the retail fx market suggests that there is a large and recurring supply of human lemmings happily willing to take the plunge.
This week we will dig the dirt on fx trading using research on the topic from some of the world's largest regulatory authorities.

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6 Ways B2B Marketers Use Social Media To Get Gangbuster Results

Social media is a proven winner for B2C marketers, and recent research proves it. In fact, according to a survey from Vision Critical, four out of 10 consumers buy products that they’ve liked, tweeted about, favorited, or pinned on their social network of choice. But what about B2B marketers? How are they using social to reach their prospects? It appears that when it comes to reaching business customers through social channels, content is the key. According to a study from MarketingProfs, 87% of B2B marketers are using social media platforms to promote their content marketing.
However, there’s a problem with using social media to deliver content to business prospects. The thing is, Facebook likes, Twitter retweets, Pinterest pins and LinkedIn followers don’t necessarily translate into new customers – or measurable return on investment (ROI). Without a strong strategy in place, as well as the proper tools to measure the impact of your social campaigns, you may be wasting both your time and your budget on social media marketing.
Look at it this way. Which would you rather have, 1,000 followers who never do more than like or retweet your content, or 500 followers who actually visit your site and recommend your brand to others? Obviously you’d rather have the latter, especially if they fit the profile of your ideal customer. After all, the purpose of social media marketing isn’t to gain new fans, it’s to acquire high-value customers. What does it take to make that happen, and how can you turn those interactions into increased revenue?

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FOREX-Euro skids as Greek debt talks break down and keep markets guessing

* Euro down against peers, but losses limited for now * Markets disappointed as Greek talks end abruptly without deal Adds details, quotes By Ian Chua and Shinichi Saoshiro SYDNEY/TOKYO, Feb 17 Reuters - The euro skidded on Tuesday after a collapse in talks to secure a new debt deal for Greece raised the prospect of negotiations dragging on until the last possible minute and keeping markets guessing. The common currency was down 0.2 percent at $1.1330EUR= , from Monday's high of $1.1429 and back near the bottom of its prevailing $1.1270-1.1534 range. Trading overnight was relatively light with U.S. markets shut for a public holiday. The euro struggled near a one-week low of 133.96 yen EURJPY=R . Against sterling, it came within a whisker of a 7-year trough of 73.69 penceEURGBP=R set last week. It was last at 73.74 pence. Talks between Greece and euro zone finance ministers broke down when Athens rejected a proposal to request a six-month extension of its international bailout as "unacceptable". "All up, still no deal. And something of a disappointment after what seemed to be the makings of a spirit of compromise last week," said David de Garis, senior economist at National Australia Bank. Renewed weakness in the euro helped lift the dollar index to 94.459, from a one-week low of 93.899. On the back of risk appetite dented by the latest turn in Greek debt talks, the dollar slipped overnight to a 10-day trough of 118.110 yenJPY= from a high of 118.88. It last traded at 118.330. FLASHBACKS OF 2011 The collapse of the talks unsettled markets although the consensus appears to still favour a last-minute deal for Greece, which faces the risk of running out of funds by the end of the month, when its bailout package expires

"The market has witnessed this before - it remembers the brinkmanship during the Greek debt negotiations of 2011. There are only nine trading days left until the Feb. 28 deadline but some see that as enough time. Thus we are not seeing the euro sold in panic," said Kyosuke Suzuki, director of forex at Societe Generale in Tokyo. "On the other hand tail risk is definitely rising. This is limiting bargain-hunting of the euro by short-term players and the currency will remain under selling pressure." The next focus points in the debt saga will be on Wednesday and Friday

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African mobile money market set to grow by $1.5 Bln by 2019

Sub-Saharan Africa is adopting mobile financial services at a pace seen in few other places, presenting banks and mobile-network operators (MNOs) with a set of strategic choices that will go a long way toward determining their success in the region.
The use of mobile financial services in sub-Saharan Africa to do such things as pay utility bills and send money to relatives could produce an estimated $1.5 billion in fees for mobile-money providers by 2019, according to research being published today by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG). The report, Africa Blazes a Trail in Mobile Money: Time for Banks and Mobile Operators to Devise Strategies, says that sub-Saharan Africans are looking for more-secure ways to borrow and save money and are open to other financial products delivered using mobile phones, including loans and insurance.
Although mobile financial services are emerging all over the world, sub-Saharan Africa’s unique circumstances—a combination of a mostly “unbanked” population and heavy mobile-phone penetration—have turned the region into an early adopter of mobile banking and a test bed for the technology’s potential. Eight of the ten countries that make the most use of mobile financial services are in Africa, and sub-Saharan Africa has the highest proportion of active accounts (43 percent).

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Rosenthal Collins Group Named Best Boutique FCM By CTA Intelligence Magazine

CHICAGO, Feb. 17, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Rosenthal Collins Group LLC (RCG^®), a leading independent futures clearing firm, today announced that CTA Intelligence magazine this month named RCG "Best Boutique" Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) in its U.S. CTA Intelligence Services Awards 2015. The awards recognize and honor firms that have provided "outstanding support and services to the North American managed futures industry" and "demonstrated exceptional customer service" over the past 12 months.

CTA Intelligence is a subscription-only monthly publication published by Pageant Media, focused on the key issues and commercial opportunities for professionals working in the commodity trading advisor (CTA) and managed futures space.

RCG Chairman and CEO Scott Gordon said: "We're honored that CTA Intelligence selected the firm for this award. We always strive to offer the highest level of dedicated service, flexibility and comprehensive support to the futures community, from CTAs, to Introducing Brokers, to professional traders, as well as commercial and retail clients."

An independent panel of expert industry judges selected the winners. In the Best Boutique FCM category, CTA Intelligence judges reported that Rosenthal Collins Group had "consistently outperformed in a crowded and competitive space. Defined by a commitment to client service and excellent technology, RCG was deemed capable of taking business from larger bank-owned competitors and winning more market share in a resurgent CTA industry." The judges characterized RCG as "an outstanding player in the FCM space."

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The Let’s Inform You Seminar with a free lunch is back, register now!

HE famous Let’s Inform You (Free Lunch) Seminar is back in February, this time at The Manor House, Paredon, Pinoso 03650 on Tuesday February, 17 2015 - noon start.
Over recent months experts from four local companies have answered well over 900 questions from the people who have attended seminars on the Costa Blanca. Feedback has been very positive from this fantastic and really great opportunity.
How wonderful it is to be able to ask the experts in various fields about how things work in Spain.
Once again the highly respected UK and Spanish companies based on the Costa Blanca are inviting all British and European nationals, spending time or living in Spain, to a relaxed seminar to answer all the questions they have regarding life in Spain.

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Market pulled down by two major banks

The share market is lower as Commonwealth Bank lost value after paying a dividend and ANZ's trading update disappointing investors.
Commonwealth Bank was down about 2.5 per cent after paying its half year dividend to shareholders, which typically results in a fall in share price.
"It's paying out cash to shareholders, so that's taking money out of the market," CommSec market analyst Juliana Roadley said.
ANZ's quarterly update, which showed another rise in cash profit but a fall in the profitability of its lending, was also weighing on investor's minds, she said.
"The result wasn't that bad, but one thing that we have seen from most of the banks that have reported so far is a concern about their net interest margins," Ms Roadley said
"When you look at the weighting of those two large stocks in the banking sector being down, that's pulling the index into the red at the moment."
Commonwealth Bank had dropped $2.67 to $90.97, ANZ was down 81 cents, or 2.3 per cent, at $35.06, while National Australia Bank was up 23 cents at $37.73 and Westpac was 18 cents higher at $37.83.
In the resources sector, Fortescue Metals had gained one cent to $2.69 despite cutting its dividend after an 81 per cent fall in half year profit.


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The Danger of Waiting for a Market Crash Before You Invest

If you, like most investors, like to scoop up bargains in the stock market, you’d probably prefer to wait for the market to crash before investing.
But here’s the thing – that wait for a substantial crash (say a drop of 20% or more), can be harmful to your portfolio at times.
Let’s assume for instance that you were interested in vehicle inspection outfit Vicom Limited (SGX: V01) and supermarket retailer Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd (SGX: D01) at the start of 2006, when the duo had share prices of S$0.93 and US$3.62 respectively.
If you had a crystal ball back then and foresaw the Great Financial Crisis of 2008-09 and the 67% collapse from peak-to-trough for the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) during the crisis, it’s very likely that you would have held off buying Vicom and Dairy Farm until after the crash had arrived.
But here’s the thing, Vicom had bottomed-out at around S$1.40 per share during the crisis in October 2008 while Dairy Farm did so in December the same year at a share price of US$3.90. Even at their lowest points in one of the worst economic and stock market crashes the world had seen since the Great Depression of the 1930s, both shares had higher prices than at the start of 2006.
The experience of Vicom and Dairy Farm, while admittedly being cherry-picked examples, serves to bring home the point that it does not always make sense to not invest because you’re worried about a crash.

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Forex Market: EUR/GBP daily trading forecast

Friday’s trade saw EUR/GBP within the range of 0.7388-0.7436. The pair closed at 0.7393, losing 0.26% on a daily basis and extending losses from Thursday.
At 7:38 GMT today EUR/GBP was up 0.01% for the day to trade at 0.7394. The pair touched a daily high at 0.7405 at 2:40 GMT.

Fundamentals

Euro area

Eurogroup Meeting

Finance Ministers of Euro area Member States are to hold another meeting in Brussels today, with its focus being the Greek debt situation. Higher market volatility may be seen after the official decision is announced.
“We’re looking at difficult negotiations on Monday,” Greek Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras, said in a weekend interview with German Stern magazine. “Nevertheless, I’m full of confidence.”
Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said that his country and technical delegations from the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund have already reached an agreement on many issues, the Kathimerini newspaper reported on Saturday. However, there was still uncertainty whether a final agreement will be struck today.

German Buba Monthly Report

At 11:00 GMT Deutsche Bundesbank is to release its Buba Monthly Report, which contains relevant articles, speeches, statistical tables, and provides detailed analysis on current and future economic conditions from the bank’s point of view.

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