Articles

Trade from an informed place. We cover news, political events and market analysis plus product updates.

Articles

Trade from an informed place. We cover news, political events and market analysis plus product updates.

MT4 to MT5: Is it Time to Make the Change?

In this brief article we explore the major differences between the MT4 and MT5 Trading Platforms in order to assist reader in deciding whether they should consider switching to the latest version of this established Forex gateway to the market. Do you have to make a switch now? The reality for now is that MT4 is still used widely by brokers and t...

February 18, 2019
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Earnings Report: Brambles Limited

The Logistics Company has reported a 27% decline in net profit (after tax) for the six months ended 31 December. The drop in profit is mainly due to higher costs on: Fuel Transport Brexit-proofing costs. The company was also deprived of the one-off tax benefit of US$130 million from a year ago. Below is a summary of key metrics: Sour...

February 18, 2019
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The Less-Dovish Central Bank

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) made its first interest rate decision and monetary policy, but it was not what the market participants expected. The Central Bank did not follow the same dovish theme seen by other central banks. The Official Cash Rate (OCR) was left at 1.75%, as widely expected, and the RBNZ expects to keep the OCR at this ...

February 13, 2019
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Reserve Bank of New Zealand – First 2019 Policy Statement!

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) will make its first interest rate decision for the year 2019. We will see the Press Conference, Rate and Monetary Policy Statement on Wednesday. Market participants are expecting the RBNZ to adopt the same dovishness seen lately by major central banks The Reserve Bank of Australia The Federal Reserve B...

February 12, 2019
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Bank of England Synopsis

Thursday the 7th of February saw Bank of England Governor, Mark Carney, stepped back up to the mark to take on a barrage of Brexit related economic questions after giving a speech about the BoE’s stance on their current assessment of the negotiations. Economy The speech started not looking so good for the UK economy, with the Governor stating t...

February 8, 2019
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Forex 10 Year Challenge

To begin the week, I thought we'd do something a little bit different. We have taken the current ten-year challenge sweeping social media and tried to apply it to a brief technical analysis summary of the major FX pairs. Where were they trading in early 2009? And where are they now? Judging by the list below, it would seem gold wins the gold...

February 4, 2019
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Boeing and Facebook Earnings

Boeing (BA) The Aerospace giant beat estimates and reported a record $101.1bn revenue for the year 2018. It is the first time that the company reports more than $100bn as annual revenue. Below is a summary of the fourth quarter earnings. Record revenue of $28.3 billion and record operating profit of $4.2 billion driven by higher volume Reco...

January 31, 2019
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Apple’s First Quarter Results

Today, Apple reported its First Quarter Results which was largely in-line with expectations, except for the iPhone revenue, which that fell slightly short of estimates. Quarterly revenue came at $84.3bn instead of $83.97bn forecasted. Compared to the year-ago quarter, it is a 5% decline. iPhone Revenue declined by 15% from the previous ye...

January 30, 2019
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A Busy End of the Month

US Government Shutdown President Trump has agreed to temporarily end the shutdown, putting an end to the most extended shutdown in US history. The three-week pause initially lifted investor sentiment and helped Asian stocks push higher on Monday’s open. It is reported that the shutdown cost the economy $11 billion, which includes approximatel...

January 29, 2019
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World Economic Forum: Buzzword – Populism

 The word Populism is probably the buzzword at the World Economic Forum this year. The headlines this week were heavily dominated by the concerns of the rise of populism around the globe. “Brazil’s Bolsonaro is the Face of Populism at the Davos Forum” “Merkel encourages multilateralism in the face of populism…” “Chrystia ...

January 25, 2019
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Preview: The European Central Bank Rate Decision

On Thursday, the European Central Bank will announce its first policy decision of the year on whether to increase, decrease or maintain the interest rates. The decision is scheduled to be announced at 12:45 PM UK time. Why Is The Announcement Important? The European Central Bank is the central bank for the Eurozone, the countries which have adopt...

January 23, 2019
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International Monetary Fund (IMF): Growth Warnings

The World Economic Outlook has further shifted to the downside. The growth estimates for 2019 and 2020 were downgraded in October 2018 mainly due to trade tensions. The recent further downward revisions were the result of the weakening momentum in key industrialised economies. The table below depicts the “Weakening Global Expansion”: Th...

January 22, 2019
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China’s Stimulus Program

Fears of slowing growth and weak Chinese data have forced China to ramp up its efforts to stimulate its economy and reassure investors: Record $83 billion injection: China injected a large amount of money in its economy. $83 billion was placed in the country’s financial system to avoid a cash crunch that would add further pressure to an �...

January 22, 2019
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‘FAANG’ Stocks and Their Role In The Markets

If you follow any form of financial market publication, news source or have ever watched 15 minutes of Bloomberg, then you will undoubtedly have heard the term ‘FAANG’ stocks. But what does ‘FAANG’ mean? In simple terms, it is the acronym for the shares of Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google (now Alphabet inc.) Coined due to...

January 17, 2019
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432-202 – Biggest Defeat in Modern Times

Theresa May suffered the worst defeat in recent times in British history. The House has spoken, and Theresa May stated that the government will listen. “It is clear that the House does not support this deal, but tonight’s vote tells us nothing about what it does support.” It will be a big challenge for her to negotiate a withdrawal agr...

January 16, 2019
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