18 Mar 2011

Posted at 14:34h in The Friday Brief by
Markets are reacting positively to a rare concerted intervention in the currency markets by the world’s biggest economies, known as the G7, to stem the damaging rise in the value of the yen as well as from news that Libya’s government announced an immediate cease-fire and end to all military operations across the country. A strong yen makes Japanese exports much more expensive on world markets. As a primary part of Japan’s economy, exports will be crucial to the re-building of their economy. Additionally, Japan’s decade-long struggle with deflation will be made even worse by a strong yen. 

04 Mar 2011

Posted at 14:55h in The Friday Brief by
The unemployment situation in the US appears to be improving marginally with the latest government release of data. Employers added 192,000 workers in February and the unemployment rate unexpectedly declined to 8.9%, the lowest level since April 2009. During his Congressional testimony this week Fed Chair Ben Bernanke said there were “grounds for optimism” about the labor market in the coming months.