Dawn of a year of trading dangerously

From Reuters Out with the old year, in with the new and for investors uncertainty is likely to be the only certainty once more. The euro zone debt crisis is far from resolved, turmoil in the Arab world has shifted to Syria and Iran has threatened to stop the flow of oil from the Gulf if sanctions are imposed due to its nuclear ambitions. 2011 was a dire year for equities outside the United States with world stocks poised to drop by around eight percent and emerging...

Gold’s ‘death cross’ signals more losses coming

From Reuters Gold’s 20-day moving average falling below its 200-day and its brief foray into a bear market suggest momentum has turned bearish and a further pullback could be on its way. Bullion’s 20-day moving average dipped below its 200 DMA on Thursday, in what technical analysts termed a ‘death cross,’ as the short-term momentum has turned more negative than long-term trend. That could show that the current downtrend is pervasive. ‘Any time there is a death cross,...

Santa rally may face test next week

From Reuters Get ready. The last trading week of the year will be a test for stocks to prove whether they have the strength to carry a rally into next year. The broad S&P 500 index broke through its 200-day moving average on Friday after turning positive for the year as a four-day rally lifted stocks following a spell of better-than-expected economic data. At Friday’s close, the S&P 500 was up 0.6 percent for the year. But despite the recent economic data...

Euro creeps higher but vulnerable into 2012

From Reuters The euro edged up versus the dollar on Friday with risk appetite underpinned by upbeat U.S. data but with the euro zone crisis unresolved, investors were likely to sell the single currency again in 2012. A drop in U.S. weekly claims for jobless benefits to a 3-1/2-year low and improved U.S. consumer sentiment in December boosted stocks and kept the euro afloat, though traders said flows were light as year-end holidays approached. The single currency...

Fragile euro edges higher, helped by U.S. data

From Reuters The euro edged up versus the dollar on Friday with risk appetite underpinned by better U.S. data, but investors were likely to sell the currency again in 2012 while the euro zone remained plagued by uncertainty surrounding its debt crisis. A drop in U.S. weekly claims for jobless benefits to a 3-1/2-year low as well as an improvement in U.S. consumer sentiment in December boosted stocks and kept the euro afloat, though traders said flows were light...

Asian shares up as US data spur year-end bounce

From Reuters Asian stocks rose more than 1 percent and U.S. index futures also gained on Friday, as signs of a strengthening economy in the United States encouraged a year-end bounce for riskier assets. European shares were also expected to open higher, helped by a 0.5 percent rise in S&P 500 index futures that pointed to further gains when U.S. trading resumes. Wall Street stocks had risen for a third straight day on Thursday, leaving the S&P 500 index...

Japan set to enter dollar swap agreement with India

From Reuters The Japan government is considering a dollar swap arrangement with India to provide emergency liquidity in case the European debt crisis reaches emerging economies, the Nikkei business newspaper reported on Sunday. The agreement would set the total swap arrangement at $10 billion, or 780 billion yen, the Nikkei said. Both countries are looking to sign off on the arrangement next Wednesday, when leaders meet at a bilateral summit, the paper said. The...