SGM-FX insights

British Pound Ahead of Thursday’s by election, it is worth looking at Sterling and instead of predicting gloom and doom – initially at least – pose the question as to what would make Sterling appreciate at this time? Economic growth: not apparent given that the UK economy is contracting slightly following a drop in spending […]

USD 30 million With US inflation at 4.2% in May from 1 year earlier, the room for manoeuvre for incoming Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is looking problematic. Gasoline is up 50%, airline fares 27%, clothing 5%, and electricity 6% from a year ago. The challenge of satisfying POTUS who is expecting interest rate cuts […]

Federal Reserve Today’s US inflation figures will be even more closely watched than usual given that the path of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy will in large part depend on how they look. Add into the mix the on-off and hopefully on nature of the Iran-US peace talks which alternatively drives USD down and […]

US Employment As we wrote on Friday, USD was going into the weekend strong. In fact, it became stronger still on employment data released on Friday afternoon: the expectation from what were known in the 1970’s as chart monkeys, in the 1980’s as teenage scribblers then in the first Bloomberg TV age of the 1990’s […]

USD 30 million That is the level of wealth one must have amassed to qualify for inclusion in the category of what wealth managers and private bankers term as ultra rich. Of the world’s 7 billion people less than 1 million are ultra rich and despite the efforts of the current UK government to relieve […]

UK Population If not the most emotive political topic in the UK today, that of the population size and the UK’s demographics runs cost of living a close second. 200 years ago in 1821, the breakdown of the then United Kingdom was Ireland 6.8 million, Scotland 2.1 million, Wales 800K, and England 10.4 million which […]

EU capital markets As we have written before, for the EUR to become a global reserve currency requires a number of pre-conditions which largely stem from the establishment of an integrated EU Capital Market. Brussels is accused of dragging its feet if not actually being obstructive so the 6 largest countries have banded together to […]

Oil and Inflation Up over 2% yesterday on the hopes of an elusive peace deal seemingly slipping away once again and further tensions and hostilities in the Gulf, oil has had a topsy turvy time having fallen sharply by over 5% at the beginning of the week. The continuing near USD 100 price for Brent […]

Mariannes In addition to gold coins such as South African Krugerrands, Canadian Maple Leafs, and American Gold Eagles, from June 16 you will once again be able to buy French Mariannes. The last time France minted gold coins was mostly in the Napoleonic era and appropriately they were called Napoleons and were issued between 1803 […]

Fujairah  For those readers who are less familiar with the Emirate states that make up the UAE, Fujairah, and Ras Al Khaimah are the less glamorous relations of Dubai and Abu Dhabi with low-cost housing, largely immigrant labour accommodation and heavy industry rather than swanky lifestyle and up market shopping malls. With the new oil […]

EU-USA Trade Deal As we recently wrote, when EU Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen emerged from her 1-2-1 meeting with President Trump at Turnberry Golf Course last summer, it was all clear: the EU would remove tariffs on US goods and grant preferential access to the EU for all US land and sea produce; […]

My body’s screaming “My body’s screamingCan you hear the sound?”   “Kiss me, take my heart and break it againPlease say that this night will never end”   “Let the night go up in flames till we forget who we are”   “Before we go, before we go home”  And it was eyes never mind […]