Pound Rises on GDP and Better Outlook from S&P

The Great Britain pound surged today after the Standard & Poor’s raised the credit outlook for Britain and the GDP report trimmed the bets for the quantitative easing.

Yen Continues to Strengthen, Intervention May Be Possible

The Japanese yen continued to rise today as the Group of Twenty meeting last week hasn’t provided decision, which could change the behavior of the currencies.

The Bank of Japan confirmed its readiness to intervene in order to weaken the currency for protection of the nation’s exporters. Japan’s companies already reported the earnings, which declined because of the stronger yen. The analysts think the central bank wouldn’t intervene in the near term, attempting to gauge the influence of the strong currency on the economy before taking any significant actions.

Dollar Attempts to Reverse Downward Trend Ahead of G-20 Meeting

The US dollar fluctuated today, attempting to rise but meeting a resistance, as Timothy Geithner, the US Secretary of the Treasury, suggested that the G-20 countries should agreed on the targets to reduce the current account imbalances.

Dollar Strengthens as China Rises Interest Rates

The US dollar strengthened today against all other currencies as the demand for the higher-yielding currencies slumped after the unexpected interest rates hike in China.

The subsequent sell-off boosted the dollar and crippled other currencies. The greenback also strengthened after Timothy Geithner, the US Secretary of the Treasury, said yesterday that the policy makers would attempt to preserve the strength of the US currency and aren’t planning the devaluation.

Risk-Aversion Buoys JPY, BoC Awaited

Risk-aversion continued to dictate market direction, with the Japanese yen touching a fresh 15-year high against the dollar while most of the major currencies tumbled against the greenback. The Canadian dollar slid by 1.2% and the euro dropped by more than 1.5%. The US equity bourses slid after returning from the long-weekend, with the major indexes shedding more than 1%. Meanwhile, safe-haven flows propped spot gold it’s a new record higher to settle around $1,257.30 per ounce while crude oil drifted lower to dip beneath the $73-per barrel mark.

Aussie Retreats After Reaching Parity with Greenback

The Australian dollar traded at parity with its US counterpart today before retreating on the speculation that the Aussie rallied too fast.

The weakness of the greenback and the concerns for the US economy allowed the Australian dollar reach parity against the US currency for the first time. It looks like the traders haven’t got used to the idea of parity between these two currencies and unwilling to buy the Aussie at such high prices. The fundamentals haven’t changed, though, and the Australian currency has potential to rise further.

Can Euro Resume Its Rally After Decline

The euro retreated today against the US dollar and the Japanese yen on the speculation that it rallied too much earlier. It may still resume its rally depending on the decisions of the US and Japanese policy makers.

Study says texting laws not working

A new study from the insurance industry finds texting-while-driving laws have had no immediate benefit in reducing crashes.

The study done by a branch of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety looked at crash data from four states with texting bans. It found that in three of the states — California, Louisiana and Minnesota — crashes actually increased.

Dollar Weakens as Manufacturing Slows

The US dollar dropped today against the euro to the lowest level since March, and also fell against all other major currencies, on the speculation that additional stimulus is required to support the US economy and after the report showed that the manufacturing growth slowed.

Aussie Drops from Two-Year Record, Remains Strong

The Australian dollar fell today, after reaching the highest level in two years against the US dollar, as the report showed that the new home approvals declined in August, causing the speculation that the central bank wouldn’t raise the interest rates next week.