It’s Official – The RBA Is Working the Australian Dollar Lower

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 30, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) It’s official – the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is trying to work the Australian dollar lower. In a surprise move, the RBA cut rates 50 basis points to 3.75%. Expectations … Read more

Austerity Under Fire: One of Several Economic Drags on the U.K. Versus the U.S.

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 30, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) As recession descends across Europe, fiscal policies have received extra scrutiny. Austerity measures have been promoted as keys for long-term economic stability but the necessary short-term pains have been understated. Without … Read more

Australian Dollar Holds Firm Ahead Of A Likely Rate Cut

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 29, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) One of my reasons for recently turning bearish on the Australian dollar (FXA) is what I see as the likelihood of additional rate cuts through the year. It seems the consensus … Read more

Reserve Bank of Australia Seems Biased Toward More Monetary Easing

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 3, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) In its latest statement on monetary policy, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) dropped more hints that it is likely biased toward further easing of monetary policy and has a preference … Read more

Bank of Japan “Fights Off” the Federal Reserve As Yen Weakens Again

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on February 16, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) The U.S. dollar and Japanese yen have played an up and down game of seesaw since July of last year. The USD/JPY, or the inverse of the Rydex Currency Shares Japanese … Read more

No QE3, But Federal Reserve Statement Green Lights Commodity Currencies and Gold

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on January 26, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) In its latest monetary policy proclamation, the Federal Reserve announced that it will likely extend the window for near-zero interest rates until at least late 2014. There was no hint of … Read more

Talk of QE3 Increases As the Dollar Rises – Time to Reposition

This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on January 12, 2012. Click here to read the entire piece.) Mainly thanks to a plunging euro (FXE), the U.S. dollar index (UUP) now sits at 52-weeks highs set in January, 2011. When the Federal Reserve telegraphed its second round of quantitative … Read more

From Destocking to Restocking, Joy Global Weakens Case for a Commodities Crash

This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on December 20, 2011. Click here to read the entire piece.) Last week, Joy Global (JOY) reported its fourth quarter and 2011 operating results and provided some valuable details on the outlook for commodities in 2012. JOY blames inventory destocking for the … Read more

Australia Remains Attractive As RBA Quietly Opens Door to Dropping Rates

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Australian dollar has fallen so far, so fast over the past month that I failed to notice a major change in tone from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) on monetary policy until now. … Read more