Investment
Amex and HVB FX results growing
MUNICH -- American Express Bank saw a modest uptick in its Q3 FX trading revenues, with $54 million in FX income, up from $50 million for Q3, 2002.
Risk management for Kiwi wine exporters
With the booming popularity of New Zealand wines in the US, the threat of Kiwi dollar appreciation looms large over the New Zealand wine-making industry. Wes Price in ANZ Investment Bank’s consultative risk management group in Melbourne, describes a…
GFI buys exotic options model
LONDON -- Inter-dealer broker and market data firm GFI Group has bought options pricing model dVega, and integrated it with the latest release of its flagship options pricing tool Fenics FX, GFI will announce today (October 27).
‘Discount forward’ for hedging euro/sterling
With euro/sterling forecast to strengthen next year, Danny Goldblum, from HSBC’s global FX structuring team in London, proposes a solution to give a UK corporate that imports from Europe the protection of a forward contract at an improved rate
‘Extendible forward plus strategy’ for corporates with sterling exposures
Barclays Capital’s senior FX structurer, Ben McMillan, suggests an ‘extendible forward plus’ strategy to enable a corporate with a stream of sterling receipts to lock in an enhanced minimum cable rate but participate in any further moves to the upside
Currency option hedging for gold producers
Bill Nagl, Sydney-based head of ANZ Investment Bank’s consultative risk management group, looks at how Australian gold companies can hedge against a strong Aussie dollar
US pressure to bring ‘freer markets’
NEW YORK -- Active engagement between the US, China and other countries is leading towards freer markets, said John Taylor, treasury undersecretary for international affairs, last week.
Total return analysis: currencies vs bonds
Establishing the risk and return characteristics of holding a currency position sometimes necessitates presenting a more formal economic interpretation of an FX transaction, says Robert Balan, head of financial market strategies at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen
State St to launch FX fund in fourth quarter
LONDON -- State Street Global Advisors (SSgA), the investment management arm of State Street, is set to launch a currency fund in the fourth quarter as part of its newly created hedge fund strategies group, a senior official at the firm told FX Week .
China stands firm on peg
BEIJING -- China will continue to stand firm in the face of increasing international pressure to relax the yuan’s peg to the US dollar, analysts in the Asia-Pacific told FX Week .
Banks failing SMEs on hedging
LONDON -- More than half of UK businesses with exposure to currency transactions totalling £20 million per year are failing to hedge their exposure, according to research produced by currency services firm Travelex in the UK. The lack of protection is…
The hedge that lets you ride the wave
David Faller, Chicago-based head of FX options at BMO Financial Group in Chicago, and Evan Steed, FX options trader in Toronto, suggest a cost-effective hedging strategy to enable a Canadian exporter to fully hedge 12 months of equal US dollar…
Asian intervention tops G7 agenda
DUBAI -- Japanese and Chinese manipulation of the FX market will top the US agenda at this week’s meeting of the Group of Seven leading industrial nations in Dubai, analysts said. The US could shoot itself in the foot, however, as China and Japan are…
Forward hedge overlay for euro
A Middle Eastern importer could change its risk profile by overlaying its forward hedges, says Charlie Brown, head of structuring and solutions at Standard Chartered in London. By pairing euro puts at lower levels with euro calls, the importer can assure…
All eyes on the Middle East
Growing interest in Islamic banking, new technological developments and a wave of freshly repatriated money have put forex trading in the Middle East on the cusp of an exciting new era, reports Nikki Marmery
Malaysia leads the way in the Far East
KUALA LUMPUR -- The Middle East is not the only region in which Islamic banking is undergoing development. The Asia-Pacific region has a thriving Islamic finance industry, based chiefly in Malaysia, which is home to the Islamic Financial Services Board …
Participating in rupee options
Following the launch of rupee options trading in India in July, Arun Khurana, head of financial markets distribution & derivatives marketing at ABN Amro in Mumbai, proposes a zero-cost 'participating forward' solution for an Indian client wanting to…
HSBC issues remittances challenge to Citi
LONDON -- HSBC last week issued a challenge to Citigroup by declaring its intention to target the $10 billion a year US/Mexican remittances market.
Amex Bank results jump
American Express Bank last week reported year-on-year growth of 30% in revenues from FX trading for the first half of 2003.
Basel may advise banks on outsourcing
BASEL -- The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision may investigate the risks associated with outsourcing trading systems to third parties, a senior Bank for International Settlement (BIS) official told FX Week .
Mitigating euro/krona uncertainty
FX quantitative strategist Giovanni Pillitteri and corporate risk structurer Bertrand Nortier at Deutsche Bank in London present a solution for a Swedish client to monetise flow uncertainty and participate in case of the Swedish krona weakening
German hedge fund reform raises FX hopes
MUNICH -- New proposals for the laws governing hedge funds and funds of funds in Germany could open up the market to a wider audience and heighten FX opportunities.
A ‘worst-of’ option to hedge dollar weakness
Andy Kaufmann, FX structurer at Merrill Lynch in London, explains a solution for an investor who is looking to benefit from a USD move against a variety of currencies
Dealing with yen downside risk
A collapse in the dollar/yen could offer significant trading benefits. How should an FX trader deal with the downside risk? By John Taylor, chairman of FX Concepts in New York