Markets at a Glance: Bearish Stocks, Bullish Oil, and Active Forex Movements
07 August 2023
Welcome to a fresh week of trading, and despite the generally empty calendar, the markets are teeming with activity. On Monday, the markets anticipate the announcement of foreign currency reserves from Switzerland and a speech from FOMC member Harker during the European session. Two key markets, Australia and Canada, have a holiday today, so their domestic exchanges are closed.
Notwithstanding the closure of Australian and Canadian markets, the currencies of these two nations are very much alive and kicking on the forex market. Interestingly, the Australian dollar is the strongest currency on the market at present, followed closely by the Canadian dollar. Meanwhile, the American dollar is gaining some ground today. Contrarily, safe haven currencies like the Japanese yen and Swiss franc are losing traction ahead of the start of the European session.
In terms of forex pairs, the EURUSD pair is demonstrating a significant downward trend, currently trading below the critical resistance point of 1.15. On the other hand, the EURGBP pair is poised on the brink of a buy signal following the completion of an inverse head and shoulders pattern.
As we transition to the index markets, the picture is not very rosy. Indices globally are in a phase of bearish correction. The Dow Jones, for instance, is on course to reach a key horizontal support point at 34,500. The NASDAQ, in the meantime, is engaged in a fierce tussle with the key horizontal resistance at 15,250. Germany's DAX is also preparing to test the key horizontal support at 15,700 points. If this trend is anything to go by, it appears the correction will continue at least for the first half of this week.
On the commodities front, precious metals are succumbing to bearish pressures. Gold is on a trajectory towards the 1,905 support mark, while silver is trading along one of its mid-term uptrend lines. However, the oil market is faring much better. Friday saw new mid-term highs for oil. As of now, WTI Oil is trading at the key horizontal resistance of $83 per barrel. Although the prevailing bullish momentum poses a tantalizing opportunity for a bearish correction, only time will tell if this correction materializes.
To sum it up, the start of the week paints a bright picture for oil but casts a shadow on the stock markets. If current trends hold, it seems likely that the first few days of this week will unfold in a similar fashion.