Archive for December, 2011

US dollar is almost universally lower today, thanks to a small amount of optimism as the year draws to a close. However, even though the greenback is lower on the day, the currency looks to post an annual gain against the euro.

Indeed, 2011 has been a year of dollar strength as Forex traders have turned to it as a safe haven. With concerns about what’s happening in the eurozone weighing on the euro, and with uncertainty about the state of the global economy going, greenback saw solid appreciation over the past year.

Going into 2012, there is speculation that the US dollar could still retain some of its strength — depending on what happens to the euro. If solutions to the problems plaguing the eurozone aren’t found, the US dollar could see a resurgence.

For now, though, the US dollar is lower against the other major currencies. Positions are being closed out at the end of the year, and some of the drop in the greenback might be due to profit taking, as well as a measure of optimism about improvements seen to the economy.

At 16:41 GMT EUR/USD is higher at 1.2991, up slightly from the open at 1.2962. GBP/USD is higher at 1.5560, up from the open at 1.5416. USD/JPY is lower at 76.9280, down from the open at 77.6390.

If you have any questions, comments or opinions regarding the US Dollar,
feel free to post them using the commentary form below.

Article source: http://www.topforexnews.com/2011/12/30/us-dollar-lower-today-but-looks-to-post-annual-gain/

Canadian dollar is largely mixed in forex trading today, looking for direction as concerns about the oil supply mesh with speculation about what’s next for the global economy.

Loonie relies heavily on oil prices for direction in Forex trading, since that is one of its major exports. With oil prices slightly lower today (but up on the year),  Forex traders are looking for direction. Additionally, there is uncertainty about global oil supply with the latest developments in Iran. Although restricted oil supply could mean higher oil prices in the future, for now prices are lower.

Canadian dollar is finding success against the greenback right now, though. With the prospect of economic recovery speeding up in the United States, Canada hopes to gain. The United States is Canada’s biggest export partner, and a better situation there could mean an improve loonie in Forex trading.

For now, though, the situation requires more of a wait and see approach. Many traders are closing out positions in preparation for the end of the year, and we will need to see what direction global events, and global economies, seem to be taking for the new year.

At 17:34 GMT USD/CAD is lower, down to 1.0166 from the open at 1.0199. GBP/CAD is higher though, up to 1.5780 from the open at 1.5724.

If you have any questions, comments or opinions regarding the Canadian Dollar,
feel free to post them using the commentary form below.

Article source: http://www.topforexnews.com/2011/12/30/canadian-dollar-mixed-in-forex-trading/

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XE Forex Rates

 
USD
EUR
GBP

1 USD =

1.00000

0.77044

0.64326
Inverse:
1.00000
1.29796
1.55459

1 EUR =

1.29796

1.00000

0.83493
Inverse:
0.77044
1.00000
1.19771

1 GBP =

1.55459

1.19771

1.00000
Inverse:
0.64326
0.83493
1.00000

1 JPY =

0.01295

0.00998

0.00833
Inverse:
77.19621
100.19797
120.00827

1 CAD =

0.98068

0.75556

0.63083
Inverse:
1.01970
1.32353
1.58521

1 AUD =

1.01860

0.78476

0.65522
Inverse:
0.98174
1.27427
1.52621

1 CHF =

1.06631

0.82152

0.68591
Inverse:
0.93781
1.21725
1.45791

1 RUB =

0.03114

0.02399

0.02003
Inverse:
32.11503
41.68419
49.92563

1 CNY =

0.15887

0.12240

0.10220
Inverse:
6.29440
8.16991
9.78520

1 ZAR =

0.12380

0.09538

0.07963
Inverse:
8.07772
10.48460
12.55753

1 MXN =

0.07173

0.05527

0.04614
Inverse:
13.94048
18.09426
21.67170

Article source: http://www.xe.com/news/2011/12/30/2374873.htm?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=TL&utm_content=NOGEO&utm_campaign=News_RSS_Art3

By Parisa Hafezi

TEHRAN, Dec 30 (Reuters) – Iran will fire long-range missiles during a naval drill in the Gulf on Saturday, a semi-official news agency reported, a show of force at a time when Iran has threatened to close shipping lanes if the West imposes sanctions on its oil exports.

Iran threatened on Tuesday to stop the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz if it became the target of an oil export embargo over its nuclear ambitions, a move that could trigger military conflict with countries dependent on Gulf oil.

‘The Iranian navy will test several kinds of its missiles, including its long-range missiles, in the Persian Gulf on Saturday,’ Admiral Mahmoud Mousavi, deputy commander of the Iranian navy, told Fars news agency.

During military drills in 2009, Iran test-fired its surface-to-surface Shahab-3 missile, said to be capable of reaching reach Israel and U.S. bases in the Middle East.

Washington has expressed concern about Tehran’s missiles, which include the Shahab-3 strategic intermediate range ballistic missile with a range of up to 1,000 km (625 miles), the Ghadr-1 with an estimated 1,600 km range and a Shahab-3 variant known as Sajjil-2 with a range of up to 2,400 km.

Iran began a 10-day naval drill in the Gulf last Saturday to show its resolve to counter any attack by foes such as Israel or the United States.

Iranian media have said the exercise differed from previous ones in terms of ‘the vastness of the area of action and the military equipment and tactics that are being employed’.

The United States and Israel have said they do not rule out military action against Iran if diplomacy fails to resolve a dispute over the country’s nuclear programme, which Tehran says is peaceful but which the West says is a cover to build a bomb.

HURTING ECONOMY

Iran has said it would respond to any attack by targeting U.S. interests in the region and Israel, as well as by closing the Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. Navy, whose Fifth Fleet is based in the Gulf island of Bahrain, said it would not accept any Iranian disruption of the flow of oil in the strategic waterway.

‘The firing of missiles is the final part of the navy drill,’ said Mousavi. ‘The final phase of the drill is to prepare the navy for confronting the enemy in war situations.’

Navy commander Rear Admiral Ali Rastegari also said ‘medium-range, short-range missiles and smart torpedoes’ would be test-fired.

Experts say Iran might be able to close the Hormuz Strait temporarily, but that such a move would damage its own economy.

Tensions with the West have risen since the U.N. nuclear watchdog reported on Nov. 8 that Iran appears to have worked on designing an atomic bomb and may still be pursuing research to that end.

Iran denies this and says it needs nuclear technology to generate electricity to meet growing domestic demand.

Tehran has been hit by four rounds of U.N. sanctions since 2006 as well as U.S. and European Union sanctions over its refusal to suspend sensitive nuclear work.

Some analysts say sanctions on Iran’s vital energy sector might push the clerical establishment to change its nuclear policy. Over 60 percent of state revenue is from crude exports and most of Iran’s petrol imports are shipped through Hormuz.

‘Iranian leaders are worried about sanctions on oil exports … That is why they are making such threats,’ said analyst Hossein Kazemi. ‘Sanctions on oil income will paralyse the country.’

The Islamic Republic’s leadership has repeatedly brushed off the impact of sanctions on the oil-dependent economy.

(Reporting by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Alistair Lyon) Keywords: IRAN MISSILES/

(parisa.hafezi@thomsonreuters.com)(+98 21 8820 8770)(Reuters Messaging: parisa.hafezi@thomsonreuters.com)

COPYRIGHT

Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved.

The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.

Article source: http://www.xe.com/news/2011/12/30/2374881.htm?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=TL&utm_content=NOGEO&utm_campaign=News_RSS_Art2

LONDON, Dec 30 (Reuters) – European motorists and

households should expect a smooth start to 2012, free from

shortages or queues for fuel, even if Europe’s largest

independent refiner shuts all five of its plants, because rival

suppliers will jump into the breach.

Cash-strapped Petroplus will begin shutting down

its Antwerp refinery on Sunday or Monday unless crude shipments

arrive, a union in Belgium said, and it is closing down its

162,000 barrel per day Petit Couronne plant in France on Monday.

There is no assurance that its three other plants —

Ingolstadt in Germany, Cressier in Switzerland and Coryton in

Britain — will remain operational, which means other refiners

would have to ramp up processing to fill the gap.

But excessive refining capacity in Europe means this can be

easily achieved. Rivals will be more than happy to process more

crude after the profitability of turning crude into products —

or margins in industry jargon — jumped this week after

Petroplus revealed its troubles with creditors.

U.S. refiners, which traditionally ship large volumes of

diesel to Europe, also will be happy to make up for any

Petroplus deliveries.

‘The collapse of the Petroplus refining system in Europe

would be good news for the U.S. Gulf refiners, because there is

not enough demand in the U.S. for their level of refinery

utilisation, hence the U.S. Gulf refineries will need to

maintain a high level of product exports,’ said Olivier Jakob,

with the Petromatrix consultancy.

Petroplus accounts for more than 4 percent of the European

Union’s refining capacity, but previous overcapacity in the

market, slack demand in the midst of a euro debt crisis and the

ability to replace lost capacity with imports from the United

States and Asia mean that end-users will not be severely

affected if the refineries shut.

WHOLESALE MARKET, NOT RETAIL

Traders’ costs and wholesale prices are likely to rise

ultimately, but that rarely translates into hikes in retail

prices, which are much more affected by changes in taxation.

A nationwide refiners’ strike in France in 2010, which

knocked out much more refining capacity, led to a massive change

in flow of oil and oil products across the continent and led to

some local shortages but still had a minimal impact on prices at

the pump.

‘Import substitutions are relatively straightforward for

coastal locations,’ said Alan Gelder, head of Oils Research at

Wood Mackenzie, adding inland locations — such as Switzerland

– could represents some challenges.

‘The closure of sites such as Cressier will be a lot more

movement of products down the Rhine and benefits (other)

refiners inland such as Exxon and Shell,’

Gelber said.

But Niklaus Boss, director general of the Swiss oil industry

body, said the closure of the Petroplus Swiss refinery should

not lead to major problems there.

‘It supplies 25 percent of the Swiss market, but we have so

many other ways to get imports of crude and products. There is

the pipeline from Marseille and railways as well as ships on the

Rhine. We can cover it without any problem.’

Oil products such as gasoline, diesel and heating oil are

barged down the Rhine. A dry autumn in Europe led to low water

levels that increased the cost of freight, but these costs

retreated recently as the river rose due to higher rainfall.

Gasoil futures have gained over 1 percent this week,

while Brent crude has lost nearly 1 percent, and the

gasoil premium to Brent is up around 12 percent to around $16 a

barrel.

(Reporting by Emma Farge and Simon Falush, editing by Dmitry

Zhdannikov and Jane Baird)

Keywords: PETROPLUS REFINERY/IMPACT

(simon.falush@reuters.com)(+44 2075427681)(simon.falush.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)

COPYRIGHT

Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved.

The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.

Article source: http://www.xe.com/news/2011/12/30/2374877.htm?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=TL&utm_content=NOGEO&utm_campaign=News_RSS_Art1