Daily Forecast - 19/4/2010

:: Australian Dollar: A renewed bout of risk aversion sent the Australian Dollar lower late on Friday night and opens the new week trading at 0.9210, having gapped lower from Friday night's closing level of 0.9250. Stocks and commodities were sold off sharply and a flight to safety was triggered as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) - the chief US financial regulator - accused investment bank Goldman Sachs of fraud. The Aussie plummeted 1 US cent hitting an overnight low of 0.9230 as?investors eschewed risk and moved back into the greenback and Japanese yen. With the local equity market tipped to shed 1 per cent today in the wake of the afore-mentioned fraud allegations, the dollar too, is expected to remain under pressure.

- We expect a range today in the AUD/USD rate of 0.9150 to 0.9240

:: Great Britain Pound: Pound Sterling came under renewed selling pressure on?Friday and opens lower today at 1.5290. The potential for a hung parliament at next month''s election is looming large over the pound after the first televised leaders debate in the U.K. failed to give a clear winner. Sterling hit an overnight low of 1.5366 late in the session as?the greenback and Japanese Yen rallied after?news emerged that the US securities regulator had charged?investment bank Goldman Sachs with fraud. Meanwhile, the pound is largely unchanged against the Australian Dollar (1.6580) and lower against the New Zealand Dollar (2.1620).

- We expect a range today in the GBP/AUD rate of 1.6480 to 1.6595

:: New Zealand Dollar: A renewed bout of risk aversion sent the New Zealand Dollar lower late on Friday night and opens the new week trading at 0.7070. Stocks and commodities were sold off sharply and investors shunned riskier assets as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) - the chief US financial regulator - accused investment bank Goldman Sachs of fraud. The kiwi hit an overnight low of 0.7064 immediately after the accusations hit the news wires. The kiwi has been content to range trade in recent sessions and with markets on edge at the moment, the unit will struggle today.

- We expect a range today in the NZD/USD rate of 0.7030 to 0.7100

:: Majors: The Japanese yen and greenback rallied across the board on Friday as financial stocks and commodities tumbled after revelations that investment bank Goldman Sachs?has been charged with fraud by U.S. regulator?the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The greenback?is currently trading at 91.80 against the Yen, down from 93.00 this time on Friday (i.e. Sydney open). The euro (1.3483) moved lower as investors shunned risk and retreated to the relative safety of the big dollar. Economic data in the U.S.?was largely ignored by currency markets despite housing starts climbing to an annual rate of 626,000 in March, up 1.6 per cent from?February.?

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