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

Buying Canadian On Expectations for Stronger Growth

This is an excerpt from an article I originally published on Seeking Alpha on November 27, 2011. Click here to read the entire piece.) The Conference Board of Canada anticipates stronger growth in Canada over the next two years. The sovereign debt crisis in Europe represents the most significant downside risk to this forecast: {snip} … Read more

Bank of Canada’s Base Case Straps Its Dollar Around Parity With U.S.

Currency traders appeared very disappointed that the Bank of Canada left interest rates unchanged on Tuesday. The Canadian dollar (“loonie”) immediately bounced sharply from near three-year highs against the U.S. dollar, and the USD/CAD eventually popped over parity (1.0) for the first time in two weeks on Thursday. The accompanying statement suggested that the Bank … Read more