Economic Events: (GMT)

09:00     EUR       German Ifo Business Climate Index                                         108.8                     108.3       

09:00     EUR       German Current Assessment                                                    116.5                     116.3      

09:00     EUR       German Business Expectations                                                102.0                     100.9

The German Ifo Business Climate Index rates the current German business climate and measures expectations for the next six months. It is a composite index based on a survey of manufacturers, builders, wholesalers and retailers. This report includes Current Assessment and Business Expectations. The index is compiled by the Institute for Economic Research.               

09:30     GBP       BBA Mortgage Approvals                                                            37.3K                     36.2K       

The British Bankers' Association (BBA) Mortgage Approvals measures the number of new mortgages approved by BBA-backed banks during the previous month. It includes more than half of the total U.K. mortgage market. It provides information about the buyers in the housing market in the U.K.

11:00     GBP       CBI Industrial Trends Orders                                                      -13                          -16

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Industrial Trends Orders measures the economic expectations of the manufacturing executives in the U.K. It is a leading indicator of business conditions. A level above zero indicates order volume is expected to increase; a level below zero indicates expectations are for lower volumes. The reading is compiled from a survey of about 550 manufacturers. 

 13:30    USD      Initial Jobless Claims                                    354K                      348K                     

13:30     USD      Continuing Jobless Claims                          3460K                    3426K     

Initial Jobless Claims and Continuing Jobless Claims measure the number of unemployed individuals who qualify for benefits under unemployment insurance.

A higher than expected reading should be taken as negative/bearish for the USD, while a lower than expected reading should be taken as positive/bullish for the USD.               

Just a heads up since gold is volatile and will react to most economic indicators we will begin to post the daily calendar with events that could effect the price of gold. The gold price is sensitive to a number of scheduled U.S. and Euro area macroeconomic announcements-including retail sales, non-farm payrolls, and inflation. Gold's high sensitivity to real interest rates and its unique role as a safe-haven and store of value typically leads to a counter-cyclical reaction to surprise news, in contrast to their commodities. It also shows a particularly high sensitivity to negative surprises that might lead financial investors to become more risk averse.  

These results have a number of implications. To reduce the uncertainty of the return on gold transactions, traders may wish to time their orders flow so as to avoid the release of information that has been shown to affect prices. For longer-term market participants, these results provide confirmation of the pro-cyclical bias of many commodities and gold's role as a safe-haven during periods of economic uncertainty.

Analysis and Recommendations:

Gold is skyrocketing up at the close of the session. Trading at this writing at 1772.65 a new recent high. Gold had fallen earlier in the day from a rally that took prices to a two-week high, as some of the optimism from the Greek deal faded after downbeat data from China, and with investors taking profits given recent gains for the metal. As the day drew to an end gold was trading down 60 cents at 1758.10, when it turned and surged up.

Continued worries over Greece still unnerved the markets. Many have the morning after regrets.

Sales of U.S. existing homes rose 4.3% in January and inventories fell to nearly seven-year lows, as lower prices, unusually warm weather and an improving economy all lifted demand.

The National Association of Realtors said Wednesday that January sales were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.57 million, compared to economist forecast of 4.7 million. Sales rose in all four major regions, including an 8.8% pop in the West.

 Wednesday February 22, 2012 Economic Reports     actual v. forecast

Gold Pivot Points (Time Frame: 1 Day)