🧐 ProPicks AI October update is out now! See which stocks made the listPick Stocks with AI

The Australian Dollar Continues to Lose the Race Against the S&P 500 in 2012

Published 03/15/2012, 01:15 AM
Updated 07/09/2023, 06:31 AM
AUD/USD
-
GBP/AUD
-
US500
-
BIG
-

Someone forgot to tell the Australian dollar that financial markets are in “risk on” mode. While the Australian dollar is still up for the year against the U.S. dollar, it continues to lag the S&P 500 (SPY) by a greater and greater distance.

The Aussie is now up 2.6% versus the U.S. dollar whereas the S&P 500 is up 10.9% year-to-date. When I wrote last week that “My Love Affair with the Australian Dollar Has Finally Ended,” I lamented that the specter of currency intervention added one too many risks to holding FXA, the Rydex CurrencyShares Australian Dollar Trust. The expanding under-performance pretty much seals the deal for me.
SPY FXA
SPY is approaching new highs against FXA - not even the higher yield can close this gap

The chart below suggests that the Australian dollar has topped out for a while. A month of churn in February has given way to a steady decline that now threatens January’s bullish breakout. The wedge (or triangle) I drew is a bit stylized, but it demonstrates clearly that the Aussie dollar is still clinging to a bullish mood. The next big test will come at the uptrend line which will happen to coincide roughly with 2010′s close.
AUDUSD
I still find the Aussie very useful in short-term forex trades. I am slowly rebuilding positions against a basket of currencies in anticipation of some kind of bounce, perhaps to the 50-day moving average now hovering overhead.

Full disclosure: long AUD/USD, short GBP/AUD

Latest comments

Loading next article…
Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.