Dollar Traders Watch EUR/USD, AUD/USD After Overnight Risk Plunge

We were reminded this morning that these are not the kind of market and fundamental trading conditions that you can simply leave a risk-sensitive position unattended in. Through much of the active trading hours Thursday, speculative trends were tame and the safe haven dollar was left to drift in its ever-tightening range.

With speculative participation already near 15-year lows (measured through S&P 500 futures open interest) and the FX Volatility Index dragging along at 5-year lows, there is the natural inclination to simply return to the sidelines while some even let their riskier positions collect yield. However, a lack of liquidity, markets dangling at extremes after an aggressive rally the past four weeks, and a serious unresolved risk in the US Fiscal Cliff does not make for a safe/passive trading environment.

After the rather slow trading through Thursday’s session, volatility ripped through the markets during the morning hours of the Asian trading session – normally the quietest period for systemic activity. The catalyst was the market’s last, major threat through the end of the year: the countdown to the automatic US budget adjustments. Yesterday, after the White House and Republican Congressional leaders broke without any reported progress on the ongoing negotiations; Speaker Boehner said that a Plan B bill would be put through the House of Representatives.

Both the Senate Majority Leader and the President both said the proposed back up plan would never receive approval through their respective phases, so market-based Fiscal Cliff watchers should have already discounted the effort’s market influence. And yet, when news that there wasn’t enough support in the House to pass the bill hit the wires before 8 PM EST, the markets started to convulse. The most dramatic effect came through the S&P 500 futures which collapsed nearly 50 points in minutes. The failure of an effort that wouldn’t be taken seriously wasn’t likely what the markets were responding to, rather it was the suggestion that the House was in recess until after Christmas.

If this critical branch of government is offline until next Wednesday, there is only four full days (fewer for reasonable negotiations) to push through a deal that averts automatic tax hikes and spending cuts that the Congressional Budget Office forecasts will pitch the US economy into recession in 2013. A deal can still be done, but the probabilities that it won’t are clearly starting to rise.

The return of tail risk certainly exposes positions that are deemed "risky." And yet, when we look at the risk sensitive majors (EUR/USD, AUD/USD, GBP/USD) and incredibly overbought yen crosses (EUR/JPY, AUD/PY, NZD/JPY), the reaction was tepid. A difference in market depth and speculative concentration no doubt has a lot to do with this. Now we watch to see whether a "flash" reaction will have deeper implications for risk that leverage an 11th hour dollar rally. It is important to remember: next week will be largely drained of participation, but we also have the Quadruple Witching Friday expiration Friday.

Euro Takes a Hit Through Risk Channels Overnight
Over the past few weeks, there has been something of a collective sigh of relief amongst euro traders as sovereign yield spreads, banking crises and sovereign aid payments have all found progress. This has certainly generated a serious push of support for the shared currency as it has risen against everyone of its counterparts over the past month. Yet, a relief rally is a passive move.

An active catalyst can easily take the reins. The jump in the Spanish and Greek deficit along with the three-and-a-half year low in EZ consumer confidence stir a little concern, but outright risk aversion the tide that sinks all ships. In early Friday trade, the Euro is down against all but the New Zealand dollar.

Australian and New Zealand Dollars Dive on US Fiscal Cliff Fears
There are those that believe currency’s that bear a higher yield are in fact "safer" than their counterparts because they produce return that offsets possible capital losses (a decline in the currency). However, when risk aversion kicks in, the need is to "free up" capital to either cover losing trades or hold cash. We felt a little bit of that headwind this morning when the Fiscal Cliff headlines drove equity futures lower. The threat of a broader unwind of speculative positions before the general liquidity drain of next week can exacerbate already richly priced currencies.

Japanese Yen Nudged Higher but Full Reversal Not Yet Confirmed
After a consistent drive higher, the yen crosses have essentially leveled off the past two trading days. And, finally this morning, it seems like there may be the start of an effort to unwind late-in-the game speculative positions (not to mention a sudden demand for safety. The yen is up across the board this morning (from 0.6 to 1.0 percent) on the US fiscal fears, but we are not yet seeing a full blown freefall.

British Pound: Short-Term GBP/USD Fear Reading at Record Low
Generally, activity levels across the capital markets have receded over the past weeks, months and even years. That is why we find the FX Volatility Index at its five year low and the trend in S&P 500 volume dropping to multi-year lows itself. However, there are some that are even more inert than others. And, for the short-term risk measure of GBP/USD (one-week implied volatility); we find an incredible extreme – a record low below 4 percent. The pair is certainly more fundamentally stable than most, but such a lack of concern is worrisome.

Canadian Dollar Faces Risk Winds Heading into Heavy Data
Is the Canadian dollar the perfect blend of safe haven and investment appeal? With the IMF’s reserve status contemplation still lingering in the air, we found a surprise jump in domestic economic strength from Canada in the form of the biggest jump in retail sales since October 2011. A tame performance in the risk-off overnight will lead us into possible beta volatility and GDP, CPI data tomorrow.