The Australian Dollar Stabilizes In the Wake of A Copy and Paste Monetary Decision

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on July 7, 2015. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) left its cash rate at 2.0%, right in-line with market expectations as expressed through the Australian Stock Exchange’s RBA rate tracker. In making its policy … Read more

The RBA Takes Out Insurance on Household Demand With A Well-Telegraphed Rate Cut

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on May 5, 2015. Click here to read the entire piece.) The only thing the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) missed in its amazingly accurate preview of the May decision on monetary policy from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) was that the … Read more

Stern Warnings to Financial Markets

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on October 14, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) {snip} Guy Debelle, an Assistant Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), delivered a must read speech on pricing and volatility in financial markets. He was about as subtle as … Read more

Cliffs Natural Resources CEO Yearns for Iron Ore Collusion, uh, Cooperation

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on March 12, 2015. Click here to read the entire piece.) When I last wrote about the colorful CEO of Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF), Lourenco Goncalves, he was lambasting the Australians for manipulating their currency as a last desperate measure to save … Read more

More Rate Cut Pressure As Australian Dollar’s Multi-Year Weakness Fails to Curb Trade Deficit

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on April 2, 2015. Click here to read the entire piece.) A drop in the Australian dollar (FXA) toward a fresh six-year low has not stopped Australia’s trade balance from worsening. {snip} Source: The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Source for currency … Read more

The Reserve Bank of Australia Slows the Momentum for Rate Cuts

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on March 2, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) This time around, the currency market seemed well-prepared for a rate cut from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). As luck would have it, the RBA did not cooperate. {snip} This … Read more

Australia’s Heating Housing Market Pressures Monetary Policy

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on February 11, 2015. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Australian Bureau of Statistics released its December, 2014 data on housing finance in Australia. The data show that first-time home buyers continue to decline as a percentage of all dwellings … Read more

Australian Dollar Loses Steam from Surprise China Rate Cut

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on November 24, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) One thing about a trading range is that it gives both bulls and bears a lot of trading opportunities. The latest disturbance of equilibrium in the Australian dollar (FXA) was the … Read more

Monetary Policy On Cruise Control in Australia

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on May 6, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Reserve Bank of Australia seems to have abandoned efforts to push the Australian dollar (FXA) around. The latest monetary decision contained no surprises and looked like a near carbon copy … Read more

All the Reserve Bank of Australia Has Left Is Jawboning

(This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on February 4, 2014. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) made it official: the low interest rate cycle has reached a trough. In its latest Monetary Policy Decision on February 4th, the RBA concluded (emphasis … Read more