[U][B]Fundamental Headlines[/B][/U]
• [B]USDJPY [/B]– A mixed bag of data crossed the wires for the Japanese economy. The country’s trade balance surplus widened to ¥1035.3B from ¥85.8B the month prior. Export growth jumped 13.8% on strong exports to China, which offset a reduction to the U.S. Meanwhile, machine orders fell 12.7% and companies increased borrowing to offset rising costs, which are signs the economy may have trouble weathering the current economic headwinds going forward. For more news and resources, visit our Japanese Yen Currency Room.
• [B]AUDUSD [/B]– Australian employment rose for a record 17th month as mining companies continued to hire to keep up with robust Chinese demand. Emerging market demand for resources has been able to offset the affects of four rate hikes since August 2007. In a separate report ,the consumer price estimate fell to 11.2%, as the tightening policy of the RBA is beginning to reign in inflation. For more news and resources, visit our Australian Dollar Currency Room.
• [B]GBPUSD [/B]– The U.K. trade deficit narrowed as a weakening pound pushed exports to nearly a 1 ½ year high. Record oils sales supplied much of the growth as prices per barrel continue to set new highs. The BoE cut rates by a quarter point as deteriorating growth prospects outweighed their inflation concerns Discuss the topic and your trade ideas in the GBP/USD Forum.
• Inflation, Spanning Glob, Is Set To Reach Decade High (link) – Wall Street Journal
• Dollar Slips Below 7-Yuan Barrier (link) – Wall Street Journal
• Money Market Signals Fears Over Banks (link) – Financial Times
• Yahoo, AOL Close To Combining Operations To Thwart Microsoft, Person Says (link) – Bloomberg
• Banks Take Blame For Crisis (link) – Financial Times
