And now we wait for the forex market to open!

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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Forget the euro, look at the British pound!

In all the brouhaha about Greece and the euro it's easy to forget what else is going on in the forex market. Sometimes I feel Greece is taking up too much space in traders' heads at the expense of other markets and currencies. And for a perfect example of what I mean look no further than the continued strength in GBP which has seen some great trends in GBP/NZD & GBP/CAD & I'm still waiting for the GBP/JPY to turn lower, but only once we see a major reversal in risk sentiment. On both charts the NinjaTrader trend monitor has remained firmly bullish with only a minor transition on the GBP/CAD reflecting the recent pause in the longer term trend. However, moving to the NinjaTrader currency strength indicator to the left of the chart, here we can see that the British Pound, the yellow line, is now moving ever deeper into the oversold region on the daily timeframe, so this trend...
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EUR/USD turns bearish moving through the VPOC

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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GBP gets a boost from retail sales

UK retail sales have given GBP a real boost higher & it's occupying six top spots on the currency matrix. Number was a great improvement & market has temporarily forgotten the negative CPI number. What's interesting is at 8.00 am at the London open, there was a huge buy of cable off an important order board level at 1.5520 with retail sales then just adding the momentum. Cable is also benefiting from USD pull back from its recent bullish move higher. The 4hr currency strength indicator is particularly revealing as the USD has been overbought for some time, but is now moving lower. The move higher in the London session has now moved to test the VPOC level in the daily chart, and we are now waiting to see if this afternoon's US data can help to push the GBP/USD through this key level. This is denoted on the chart with the yellow line.  ...
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More selling of the US dollar

Despite it being a holiday across most of Europe for Ascension Day - it's quite lively out there at the moment. We've also just had an unscheduled comments from Mark Carney (not shown on Forex Factory), but came up on Forex Live feed. Greek Fin Min Varoufakis also speaking & even mentioning the word 'reform'. Meanwhile on the charts it's been more selling of USD which is propelling euro & gbp higher with volatility candles on faster time frames. For cable 1.5788 is a key level being tested up to and including the daily chart. Have reading how a lot of traders are looking to short cable since it went over 1.5550, but it's just not co-operating & the principle reason is the USD which continues to be sold off. It's only in the EUR/GBP that we have seen some serious GBP selling. This is an aspect of forex trading David & I will be covering in tomorrow's forex webinars - the importance...
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An extraordinary day for the Aussie dollar

In many ways an extraordinary day - particularly for the AUD/USD which has posted a huge candle on the daily chart. In fact the three main USD pairs David & I follow, namely the EUR/USD/ GBP/USD & AUD/USD have all ended in positive territory - with the Aussie the clear leader!! All three have, of course, benefited from relentless USD selling, and for a view of whether this is set to continue we will have to wait for tomorrow's advance GDP release and also the FOMC. The USD is certainly over extended on the medium term time frames (30 and 60 min) as can be seen on the currency strength indicator alongside the chart above. However, as we've seen with the Aussie today, a currency can stay over extended for very long periods of time. In the higher time frames there is still some room for the USD to fall even further. Indeed the monthly chart for the USD index is...
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Cable continues to build bullish momentum

For forex traders in London yesterday morning, eurozone PMI and UK retail sales were the main items of fundamental news. And it was Cable again which provided us with some important trading lessons. The first was how we need to be aware of positioning ahead of any major news release. In the run up to the retail sales number, Cable had been basing around the 1.4920 support platform, having come off the 1.4975 high of the previous evening, thereby creating the start of what looked to be a down candle. However, as always is it the daily chart which is so important, providing us with a more macro view of any currency pair, and here Cable has been very bullish since bouncing off major support in the 1.4898 region. Just ahead of the news Cable started to move up, and with the release the usual volatility occurred, which triggered a candle with a 56 pip spread - taking out both longs and shorts!...
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Euro oversold in all timeframes on currency strength indicator

Ahead of the German ZEW data this morning, markets are positioning for a move in the euro dollar, with the euro now heavily oversold and the US dollar equally over bought in the faster timeframes. Using the currency strength indicator in multiple timeframes provides a fast and visual picture of currency strength and weakness, with the euro (the gold line) now deeply oversold from the the 5 minute to the 30 minute timeframe, and preparing to reverse the longer term bearish sentiment ahead of the news. Apart from the ZEW, the only other ongoing euro news is of course Greece which continues to weigh on the single currency. Finally remember that any market or currency can remain over extended for some time, and as always patience is the key coupled with the price action on the charts. The currency strength indicator is always the starting point to identify potential strength and weakness in an individual currency. Then it's time to consider...
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Cable very bearish on the longer term charts

Ahead of the manufacturing production number the British pound has been particularly lively in the past couple of hours with 6 volatility candles alone being triggered on Cable on the 3 min chart. For Cable, yesterday's rally which saw the pair bounce off support in the 1.4760 region was a move more akin to a 'dead cat bounce' as once the pair hit the major resistance at 1.4840 at the start of the US session opened the floodgates for some heavy duty selling. This took cable down 1.4684 before it finally managed to find some support as the market moved into Asia. A number of reasons have been suggested for this move, including the tensions and uncertainty surrounding the upcoming UK election, and as highlighted yesterday, we are seeing a major sell off in UK gilts. In the face of such uncertainty It appears foreign investors would much rather move their money into US Treasuries and Asia, and Japanese investors in particular...
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Another great trade on the EUR/AUD

It's been another great day's trading on the EUR/AUD, which has continued the bearish tone from yesterday, following the RBA statement and a decision to keep interest rates on hold for the time being. The 60 minute chart has delivered a consistent trend today with the pair moving through the platform of support in the 1.4125 region and as defined with the accumulation and distribution indicator. The trend monitor at the bottom of the chart continues to confirm the bearish tone, supported by the trend dots indicator. Early this afternoon the wide spread down candle saw the pair close at 1.4016 on very high volume, and confirming the current bearish tone for the pair. To the left of the chart, the Quantum currency strength indicator confirms the technical picture, with the euro (the orange line) now deep in oversold territory, and with the Aussie dollar (the blue line) continuing to rise deep into the overbought region. A great trade on this...
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