GBP

Good Morning:

German exports unexpectedly dropped in January, which pushed the Euro lower.  This is seen as another sign that the European economy is still struggling to gain traction from the global recession.
The GBP remains weak as political and economic woes continue to plague the U.K.

The Bloomberg Professional Global Confidence Index fell to 53.8 from 54.9.  This survey shows that global confidence dropped for a second month, with Greece’s debt crisis being the main culprit in undermining the global recovery. 

The GBP fell slightly after the release of worse than expected manufacturing and production out the UK.

• Industrial Production (m/m) - Survey: 0.3%   Actual: -0.4%   Prior: 0.5%
• Industrial Production (y/y) - Survey: -0.8%   Actual: -1.5%   Prior: -3.6%
• Manufacturing Production (m/m) - Survey: 0.2%   Actual: -0.9%   Prior: 0.9%
• Manufacturing Production (y/y) - Survey: 1.4%   Actual: -0.2%   Prior: -1.9%

Good Morning:

As world equity markets snap 2 days of gains-the JPY advanced as investors look for a “safer haven” for their funds.
The JPY also gained as speculation mounts that Japanese companies are repatriating profits before the end of the fiscal year.  New tax breaks initiated by the Japanese government may lead to “larger than normal” repatriations.
The GBP lost ground overnight as Moody’s Investor Services said that U.K. banks creditworthiness may be at risk.

The results of the PPI data out of the UK was mixed, but the market had a limited reaction to release. The details are as follows:

• PPI Input (m/m) - Survey: 0.1%   Actual: 0.1%   Prior: 2.0%
• PPI Output (m/m) - Survey: 0.2%   Actual: 0.3%   Prior: 0.4%

The GBP fell slightly after the Halifax HPI, which measures the change in the price of homes financed by the Halifax Bank of Scotland, came in at -1.5%; worse than the forecast of 0.3% and prior reading of 0.6%.

Good Morning:

Greek Prime Minister Papandreous announced an additional $6.6 billion of deficit cuts for the country.  As EU members contemplate a bailout package for Greece, the Greek government must prove to it’s allies that they can control  their deficit problems.  Public workers have various protests planned to demonstrate against any reduction in benefits.
The GBP rose as UK consumer confidence jumped to a 2 year high.  The Euro picked up overnight as Greece announced their deficit reduction plan.

The GBP made substantial gains across the board, gaining nearly 50 pips against the USD and JPY on the back of the UK Services PMI which rose to 58.4 from 54.5; surpassing its forecast of 55.0.

UK’s Nationwide Consumer Confidence hit a 2 year high for February with a reading of 80, much better than the 73 forecast and 73 reading the prior month. BRC Shop Prices also rose 1.7% year over year and 0.6% month over month. These releases have helped the GBP/USD pair rise through the 1.50 handle and bring the rest of the risk pairs with it as EUR/USD trades up to 1.3635.

Good Morning:

Good Morning:

The GBP slid below $1.50 for the first time in 10 months, as polls show that the Tories have the smallest lead over the Labour Party in more than 2 years-thus any legislation to assist the economy may get stalled in Parliament.
On another note-the JPY fell as investors look for higher-yielding assets.
The Euro continues to be under pressusre as the debt issues that are hurting Greece may (are) spead to other Souhern European countries.

World equity markets rose-and US Futures are pointing to a higher oipening this morning.

Oil:$79.57 Gold:$1112.70