FXIS Market Insights

Dear Friends & Fellow Investors

Due to the US Thanksgiving Holiday, market insights comes in an abbreviated format.  As always,  please email any questions to: .  Enjoy reading!

Weekly Snapshot
• Gold prices reached a new high on at $1,195 on Thursday (eSignal)
• US new home sales in October 2009 increased 6.2% to 430,000 (Bloomberg)
• US durable goods orders in October 2009 decreased 0.6%, to $166.2 billion (ESA)
• Industrial new orders up by 1.5% in the Euro area (Eurostat)
• US Consumer Confidence increased to 49.5, up from 48.7 in October (Conference Board)
• Second estimate for US GDP saw an increased 2.8% in Q3 2009 (ESA)
• Driven by the first-time buyer tax credit, existing-home sales surged 10.1% in October (Realtor.org)

Charts Of The Week  
The US Volatility Index a.k.a. the fear index has been on a relatively steady path down back to pre-crisis levels indicating that a recovery has been in the making, at least as far as stocks are concerned.  We recall the insane volatility levels reaching almost 90 in October of last year.  In terms of market jitteriness, we are certainly better off today than a year ago.

However, on Thursday world markets rattled again when Dubai World, the state holding company of Dubai, announced that it is seeking a standstill on repayment of part of its debt.  Dubai World said it seeks a six-month delay in paying creditors about $60 billion in debt.  Worries about exposure of mostly European banks triggered a wave of selling across the globe.  Volatility jumped almost 6 points on Friday and financials came under intense pressure closing Friday almost 3% down. Considering the relatively small exposure, the market sell-off is a stark reminder of how frail the recent market recovery really is.

Source: http://www.stockcharts.com

Recommended Video 
Barry Ritzholtz gives an excellent overview of the US property market.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Disclaimer
Neither the information nor any opinion contained in this communication constitutes a solicitation or offer by us to buy or to sell any securities, futures, options or other financial instruments or to provide any investment advice or service. Each decision by you to do any investment transactions and each decision whether a particular investment is appropriate or proper for you is an independent decision to be taken by you. In no event should the content of this communication be construed as an express or an implied promise, guarantee or implication by or from us that you will profit or that losses can or will be limited in any manner whatsoever. Past results are no indication of future performance.