Archived IMT (2010.02.09)

EURO TRIPLE DOWNGRADE ASSAULT. No, the US fiscal challenges have never disappeared. But it is the triple downgrading assault on Greece's credit rating from Fitch (Dec 8), S&P (Dec 17) and Moodys (Dec 22), which exacerbated the sell-off in Greek sovereign bonds and the euro currency as a whole. The US dollar, which was boosted on Dec 4th by that surprisingly positive Nov jobs report, added to those gains and spilled onto fresh selling momentum in the euro as well as the commodity currencies. Those events, coupled with questions about possible downgrades in Spain and Portugal were largely instrumental in triggering the risk-aversion play to the benefit of the US dollar. We stick w/ our $1.32 EURUSD outlook. BERNANKE POSTPONES tomorrow's Testimony due to snow. *** REGISTER FOR ASHRAFs FULL-DAY COURSE in LONDON http://bit.ly/bSHPbb ****