Unemployment Rate

Highlights

September unemployment rate slipped to 4.1 percent from 4.3 percent in August as the number of employed increased from the previous month. The unemployment rate is the lowest since November 2008 when it was 4.0 percent. Effective with September data, the government released the national average unemployment rate based on figures from all the 47 prefectures, including earthquake hit areas that were previously excluded from the data. The adjusted number of unemployed was down by 30,000 to 2.67 million for the second consecutive monthly drop. The unadjusted number of employed people fell by 330,000 to 62.76 million on the year.

Actual   Consensus    Previous

 4.1%          4.5%     4.3%

Released on 10/27/2011 23:30 for Sep, 2011

Daily Technical Analysis Pre EU 28th October 2011

EUR/USD INTRADAY: THE UPSIDE PREVAILS.

Pivot: 1.3875.

Most Likely Scenario: LONG positions above 1.3875 with targets @ 1.402 & 1.4055.

Alternative scenario: The downside penetration of 1.3875 will call for 1.381 & 1.375.

Comment: The RSI has broken above a declining trend line, the pair remains on the upside and is challenging its resistance.

Trend: ST Consolidation; MT Bearish

Equities ignored amidst euro-focus

Such is the understandable focus on Europe right now that almost unnoticed this month has been the very powerful improvement in global equity markets. Just as well,

Chinese policy-makers are turning

Against the backdrop of slower growth in Europe and the rest of the world, and with the local economy clearly responding to the significant tightening in monetary policy,

Are the storm clouds clearing in the US as well?

Europe’s creditable crisis response has almost been matched by an encouraging report out of the US suggesting that the worst may be behind them, at least in the short term.

A Bank full of bears

Not one or two but three MPC members have offered a very downbeat assessment of UK economic prospects in recent days.

Daily Forex Brief London: Thursday 27th October 2011

  Getting there, but slowly

After an all-nighter in Brussels, European leaders have finally announced a package of measures which they hope will placate the concerns of investors and traders regarding the sovereign debt and banking crisis. The package has three major components ? the firepower of the EFSF has allegedly been raised to EUR 1.4trln, Greek debt-holders have apparently accepted a 50% haircut, and European banks are to be recapitalised. Also announced was a more significant role for the IMF (although exactly what that role will be is not yet clear), and the continued involvement of the ECB with respect to buying the bonds of troubled European sovereigns in the secondary market. These measures have literally just been announced in the last couple of hours and as a result, fuller analysis will follow over the course of the day. Suffice to say at this stage, European policy-makers appear to have done enough for now to encourage the belief that they are finally facing up to the true extent of their difficulties. In response, the EUR is up above 1.40, the dollar is weaker, metal prices are higher and Asian equities are up by more than 2%.