British Banker’s Association reported an increase in mortgage approvals in May to the highest level since April 2008. The figure came in at 31,162 with the previous release of 27,685 revised higher to 29018. Housing has been stabilizing as record low borrowing costs and lower prices have spurred demand. Despite the improvement, recently released house price data from Rightmove LLC on Monday showed prices fell in June by 0.4% for the first decline in five months.
[B]Fundamental Headlines[/B]
• [I]Three Banks Suspend Their TARP Dividends[/I]– Wall Street Journal
• [I]Pessimistic Executives Cash Out of Shares[/I]– Financial Times
• [I]Hypo Real Estate Warns of Heavy Losses[/I]– Financial Times
• [I]Bernanke Prepares to Defend Record as Debate Over His Reappointment Begins[/I] – Bloomberg
• [I]Peugeot May Have $2.8 Billion Loss This Year on Lower Sales, Smaller Cars[/I] – Bloomberg
[B]EURUSD[/B] – Euro-Zone PMI statistics for June diverged as contraction narrowed in manufacturing for the fourth time to a nine month high at 42.4 from 40.7 while services PMI surprised to the downside. The sector posted at 44.5, the 13th consecutive monthly reading below 50, while economists polled by Bloomberg had expected the measure to rise to 45.6 from 44.8. The contrast in data underscores current conditions that signal further deteriorate before growth. The ECB currently expects a sizeable 4.6% contraction in Europe for 2009 along with a smaller 0.3% in 2010. Also, bank member Nowotny recently commented that he does not expect the rate to be change from its current low of one percent before 2010 as recovery remains distant. Discuss the topic and your trade ideas in the EUR/USD Forum.
[B]GBPUSD[/B] – British Banker’s Association reported an increase in mortgage approvals in May to the highest level since April 2008. The figure came in at 31,162 with the previous release of 27,685 revised higher to 29018. Housing has been stabilizing as record low borrowing costs and lower prices have spurred demand. Housing is seen as a vital component towards economic recovery as improvements in loan operations may minimize price shocks that diminish the value of homeowner equity. Despite the improvement, recently released house price data from Rightmove LLC on Monday showed prices fell in June by 0.4% for the first decline in five months. Weakness in the sector threatens to prolong economic recovery and make it difficult for the BoE to tighten monetary policy in the future. Discuss the topic and your trade ideas in the GBP/USD Forum.
