An Uneven Recovery from the Interest Rate Blues

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on July 17, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) released the minutes from its monetary policy decision meeting earlier this month. It contains some great detail on the RBA’s assessment of global financial conditions. … Read more

Surging U.S. Dollar and Carney Overwhelm Bullish Underpinnings for the British Pound

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on July 8, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) Last week was a great week of economic news for the United Kingdom. The apparent economic improvement seems to be unfolding just as Mervyn King seemed to suggest in his final … Read more

The San Francisco Bay Area’s Housing Micro-Climates: A Microcosm of A Two-Speed Recovery

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 28, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) The San Francisco Bay Area is known for its micro-climates. {snip} This area also has matching housing micro-climates. The crash and recovery from the housing bubble has exacerbated these micro-climates. In … Read more

A Crescendo Looms for the Australian Dollar Even As Traders Cast About for New Forex Leader

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on June 6, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) On Monday night (June 4th, Tuesday morning in Australia), the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) decided to leave its cash rate steady at 2.75%. The statement contained no new news and … Read more

Another Strike Against Canadian Dollar As the Public Sector Continues to Lead Job Growth

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on May 15, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) Friday’s employment report from Statistics Canada demonstrated once again how the public sector is leading the way in job growth in Canada: {snip} So, jobs in the private sector are stagnant, … Read more

Weakening Trend Likely Ready To Resume for Canadian Dollar

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 21, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) On April 17th, the Bank of Canada decided to leave interest rates unchanged. In its Monetary Policy Report Summary, the Bank of Canada extended out its forecast to mid-2015 as the … Read more

Vornado Anticipates A Major Economic Expansion And A Bubble; Fears the Internet

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 14, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) I quickly caught a Bloomberg headline about plans from Vornado Realty Trust (VNO) to sell more than it buys. I went to the VNO 2012 annual report to see for myself … Read more

Take A Pause From Your Deflation Fears and Consider Some Counter-Evidence

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 25, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Swiss franc (FXF) has started another weakening phase, putting an exclamation point on the currency market’s refusal to go along with the shrill, recent headlines claiming another deflation cycle has … Read more

Latest China GDP Figures Set Up Next Buying Opportunity

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 15, 2013. Click here to read the entire piece.) When it comes to the Australian dollar (FXA), traders have to stay nimble and on their toes. Just two days ago in “Poor Employment Report Only Slows Australian Dollar’s Breakout,” I … Read more