It was a challenge just to play college basketball. But it's definitely rewarding now. When it ends like this, it's all worthwhile. |
It's almost exclusively the rate outlook driving things in the sense that at the beginning of this week the market was 50/50 priced for a third rate hike this year with two priced in with certainty, but as things stand now even a second hike is looking questionable. |
It's just a bit of profit-taking and general nervousness. |
It's notable that CAD has participated less in the gains against the U.S. dollar than most currencies have seen. |
It's relatively limited at the moment, but if this does not resolve itself quickly there could be a very undesirable effect. Inflation is going to be higher than it would otherwise, against an otherwise healthy economic picture. |
Koizumi is viewed as a reformer. If he had lost the election, the danger would be that we could have seen Japan slip back into its old ways. |
Looking two years down the line, there are certainly some risks building up, |
On balance [the numbers] were benign again, although slightly worse than what we expected because of volatile items such as food prices. The underlying picture is still pretty comfortable. |
Outside Europe things are looking pretty healthy, with imports falling back a little bit, |
People are keen to see more evidence of rates going up in Europe and further comments are helping the euro bulls. I don't see a big move in the euro coming yet though, while U.S. rates are still this high. |
Sentiment is generally negative for the dollar even in the face of good news. The market is looking through the expected rate hikes. If you take away the interest rate support for the dollar... and the structural problem is still there, the trend for the dollar is downwards. |
The broad picture shows the economy is growing at much the same pace in the third as the second quarter, |
The effect of (a budget failure) is underscoring the negative political background for the euro, |
The effect of (a budget failure) is underscoring the negative political background for the euro. |
The general theme is one of risk aversion, |