Pause in cable’s sharp move lower

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
Last Tuesday's failure by cable to take out the 1.5818 resistance resulted in a down candle on high volume, which when it was combined with the previous day's bullish candle on very high volume gave us a two bar reversal (aka a shooting star), and the first signal that cable's preceding move away from the volume point of control region was likely to fail. This view was also validated by the volume which accompanied the shooting star, and a further clear signal of weakness to come. Against this backdrop Wednesday's sharp 267 pip sell off in cable came as no surprise with the pair also moving firmly below the VPOC to close out at 1.5463 on the session. The bearish sentiment was cable continued for the remainder of the week, as the pair closed out August 1.5390. The start of the new trading week saw cable once again come under pressure, on relatively low volume, but this is easily explained as Monday was...
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Bearish sentiment continues for eurodollar

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
The release of slightly better than expected preliminary GDP and unemployment claims for the US did manage to add some bearish momentum to the eurodollar before it found support at 1.2525 from where it has been attempting to rally higher. It goes without saying this level needs to be taken out for the pair to continue lower. However, what is also significant on the 30 min and hourly chart is that this price point marks the low of the volatility candles which were triggered at the time of the news releases. A trigger of such a candle - in other words a candle which is outside the ATR for the instrument in question - often results in the price action simply retreating within the spread of the candle. At time of writing the pair is once again approaching the 1.1225 price point and if taken out should see the pair move to test the next level of support at 1.1213. The good...
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Interesting divergence in the majors

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
During yesterday's overall market volatility the forex market posted some very interesting and intriguing price action and candle patterns, particularly with regard to the major pairs. As a general rule of thumb whenever the market becomes agitated and adopts a 'risk off' mood traders and investors can expect a strong move into safe havens such as the US dollar and gold. However, as has been the case recently where we have seen a breakdown of correlations and traditional market relationships, the USD did not react as many would have expected. A look across the daily charts of our 7 major pairs not only reveals this divergence, but also highlights the importance of understanding volatility, particularly with respect to its affect on the ATR of an instrument. As we can see from the charts only three pairs escaped triggering a volatility candle, and these were the USD/CAD, the USD/CHF and Cable with the USD rising strongly in the first two pairs, but falling in...
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USD looks set to move higher

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
In the current media speculation surrounding the impact of the PBOC decision to revalue/devalue the yuan, particularly on how this may (or may not) affect the FED's decision about raising interest rates, it is easy to forget two things. First, the fundamental news releases which too will add their own layer of volatility, and second Greece, which today is back centre stage as the Greek parliament meets today in emergency session to ratify the latest bail out deal. Today's key releases are primarily in the US with retail sales, core retail sales and the unemployment claims due. And of these it is the retail sales numbers which the market will be focused on primarily because they may give some guidance as to the FED's thinking about interest rates. Meantime in this morning's trading the USD has been broadly higher against all the major currencies except the British pound, but with the US session due to start shortly, Cable too may simply fall...
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And now we wait for the forex market to open!

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
Have been reading that carnage is expected and word is EUR/USD has already dropped to 1.1029 - although my MT4 hasn't started as yet, so we will have to wait & see. Meantime here are some levels for some of the euro pairs : EUR/USD - was already bearish & shorts at CFTC increased last week. Putting the 1.1029 aside for the time being - 1.1052 is the first level of support & if breached 1.0819 comes into play where a high volume node on the VPOC awaits. EUR/JPY - Has been in congestion for a number of days having failed to breach the 140.78 price point & now looking to turn bearish. The immediate level below is at 137.57 with any move through here then likely to test the 136.69 region. The VPOC continues to remain in the 134.94 region for the time being and should this be taken out then a longer term bearish trend will ensue. EUR/AUD - The interest rate...
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RBNZ drives volatility into the New Zealand dollar overnight!

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
The RBNZ certainly livened things up overnight - I don't remember seeing quite so many gaps or such strong moves delivered by one currency! NZD is pretty illiquid at the best of times, so any volatility will magnify any moves. With the NZD it's a case of the central bank making it very clear further rate cuts are on their way & with the US finding some bullish sentiment this morning - NZD/USD looks set for a further fall. So far this morning the pair has managed to find some support at the 0.70 region, but a quick look at the weekly and monthly chart reveals the extent of this bearish sentiment. with the month chart in particular, where the price is now at the 200 ma. The VPOC ( volume point of control) is now well above the current price action and adding further weight to the bearish sentiment. In addition, with several LVN (low volume nodes) we are likely to...
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Central banks and GBP centre stage on currency matrix

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
We have four central banks on today's trading horizon, BOJ, RBA, BOE & later this evening we have interest rate decision, policy statement and a press conference from the RBNZ. I really must come up with a collective noun for the CB's! In between we have the Manufacturing Number for the UK where forecast is for 0.1% against a previous of 0.4%. This release can be very difficult to judge as there has been no clear trend since 2009 when the number was consistently awful. On the GBP matrix we have seen some strong buying of GBP against USD, which is not surprising given the alleged Obama comments at the G7. However, GBP buying actually started last week after NFP. It was the deep lower wick to Friday's candle which signaled a potential reversal for cable. This was given further impetus on Monday, & the buying was cemented as yesterday's candle ended the session with an even deeper lower wick. The current daily chart...
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The yen currency matrix in focus as equities fall

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
The overnight fall in the Nikkei 225 of 1.76% has resulted in an impressive two bar reversal (aka a shooting star) on the daily chart for the USD/JPY - so no surprise to see the pair move lower in this morning's trading session. What is perhaps more significant is this move in the JPY is not consistent across the JPY pairs we follow on our matrix, and in particular the EUR/JPY and GBP/JPY. The latter is a pair I am looking to short on a longer term basis, but patience is required not least because I want to see the JPY begin to move away from the bottom (oversold) on the currency strength indicator. This also highlights a key aspect of forex trading, namely individual currencies can stay overbought or oversold for much longer than we expect. Much, of course, will depend on risk sentiment, and in particular whether the current downwards trend in equities continues, and if so then we...
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Aussie dollar now in sharp focus ahead of Trade Balance

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
If you come along to our forex webinars you will always hear David & I explain the importance of the fundamental news & how easy it is to be ambushed by 'events'. But I must admit so far it's been absolutely relentless & it's only Wednesday! Coming up we have Aussie retail sales & Trade Balance - both very important numbers, and so far it's been a buy of the Aussie except against the euro - a trade we've been following. Of the two releases - the Trade Balance number has been negative since July last year, and whilst February's number was encouraging, coming in at -0.44b against a forecast of -0.85b, the subsequent releases have been dire. Tonight's headline number is -2.17b against a forecast of -1.32b, in fact a further deterioration, and with AUD/USD having moved strongly higher yesterday as a result of USD weakness. it's no surprise to see a doji on today's daily chart, which by coincidence is...
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EUR/USD turns bearish moving through the VPOC

by Quantum Trading Comment Closed
The EUR/USD continues to look bearish as it sits on support between 1.0885 & 1.0890 & just below the VPOC the yellow line on the volume point of control indicator. This level has now been breached on good volume and should take the pair to 1.0863. In addition the trend monitor has also transitioned from blue to red and with the US unemployment data coming up shortly, this could provide further downwards momentum if the numbers are on target or better than expected. The forecast this time around is 271k against a previous of 274k and whilst this is an important number it is the backwash from Janet Yellen's US dollar positive comments which continue to drive the US dollar higher, coupled as always with ongoing concerns over the Greek debt issues, which have yet to be resolved - if ever! The currency strength indicator is confirming the negative sentiment for the single currency with the orange line, the euro, reaching an...
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