The South Korean currency, one of the best performers in 2009 among Asian emerging markets, had a severe weekly decline as risk aversion remained predominant after China’s statements regarding new regulations on its economy.

After China announced it will take further measures to control inflation in the country, which can be understood with implied slower economic growth, the South Korean currency declined versus most of its main trading partners currencies, as was the worst performer in the Asian region this week in foreign-exchange markets.

USD/KRW ended the week at 1,152.50 from an opening rate of 1,136.2 this Friday.

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The Canadian dollar ranked among the worst performers in currency markets today as risk aversion influenced commodities and equities trading, which are strongly related to the loonie’s rates as weak economic data in the country also influenced the confidence towards Canada’s currency.

Speculations that interest rates hikes would happen anytime soon in Canada faded further away as consumer prices retreated according to a report published today, which forced the loonie down in a day were demand for raw materials declined, affecting the outlook for the Canadian economy as half of the country’s exports are commodities. The U.S. dollar advanced sharply versus its Canadian counterpart ask risk aversion brought traders to purchase safer assets in the world’s wealthiest nation, pushing the loonie away from parity with the greenback this Wednesday in foreign-exchange markets.

A considerable amount of strength in the loonie’s rally since the beginning of the year was based on the fact that a fast paced recovery would improve odds of interest rate hikes by the Bank of Canada, which has not been confirmed or signaled by the Canadian financial authorities so far, decreasing attractiveness for the loonie. Today, the commodities market was also bearish, affecting demand for Canadian raw materials and causing a double impact on the loonie rates.

USD/CAD traded at 1.0472 as of 19:23 GMT from a previous rate of 1.0314 yesterday. CAD/JPY traded at 87.06 from 88.39.

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The dollar gained today versus most of the 16 main traded currencies as China tightened its lending restrictions, raising risk aversion in

foreign-exchange markets affecting high-yielding currencies the most, as investors search for safer bets.

The U.S. currency continue yesterday’s advance as risk aversion coming from Asia is still playing a major role in market sentiment this week, and the safety provided by assets in the country became one of the best options for these turbulent trading sessions. The euro was one of the biggest losers versus the dollar touching the lowest rate in 2010 today after International Monetary Fund officials affirmed that Greece’s situation is serious, once again making the Southern European nation to affect the outlook for the bloc’s single currency. The New Zealand dollar declined as a report in the nation showed that consumer prices dropped in the country, surprising analysts.

Chinese’s new policy regarding loans to avoid a new credit bubble is decreasing risk appetite, and events in Europe aren’t good either, this is allowing the dollar to outperform most of its trading partners currencies, as the U.S. provided relatively good data today, as analysts affirmed.

EUR/USD bottomed at 1.4095 as of 17:17 GMT from a previous rate of 1.4272 yesterday. NZD/USD traded at 0.7190 from 0.7387.

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After a week of losses versus most of the main traded currencies in

foreign-exchange markets, the Brazilian real advanced today fueled by a positive performance in commodities and equities markets.

The Brazilian real gained today versus the yen and the U.S. dollar as demand for commodities and optimism regarding the nation’s economy allowed the South American currency to revert a negative trend that lasted five consecutive days. A great sum of capital inflows to Brazilian stocks also influenced on the good performance of the real this Monday.

USD/BRL traded at 1.7661 as of 19:54 GMT from an opening rate of 1.7715.

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The U.K. currency profited today from an increase in the nation’s house prices, fueling even further speculations that the recession might be ending in Britain, attracting investors to purchase

pound-priced assets in a day of bullish equities markets in London.

In a day of predominant risk appetite as commodities and equities advanced in the U.K., the pound profited from an optimistic scenario in the country as Rightmove Plc, a leading British real estate website, indicated that house prices increased last month, adding evidences for speculations that Bank of England’s current asset purchase program may expire next month and not be extended further, which would certainly allow the pound to climb in foreign-exchange markets. The euro posted a slight decline versus the sterling as traders remained skeptical regarding Greece’s budget deficit and the European Central Bank’s capability of rescuing the Southern European nation from a financial collapse.

Several analysts believe that the pound may outperform multiple key-currencies in foreign-exchange markets this year, as the recession fades away and according to some speculations, the country’s currency would be undervalued. If positive data continues to be published the pound may experience a sharp rally, specially versus a less attractive euro in the following weeks.

EUR/GBP traded at 0.8803 as of 16:14 GMT from an opening rate of 0.8821 when markets opened yesterday. GBP/USD climbed to 1.6333 from 1.6258.

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The Canadian dollar started another week trading high versus its U.S. counterpart as markets that influence its rates rallied in the start of this week, specially energetic and metallic commodities, before tomorrow’s interest rate decision in the North American nation.

After a rather bearish past week for the crude oil which posted consecutive days of losses as risk aversion rose in Europe and China, the Canadian dollar benefited from a rebound in the oil rates today, as future contracts advanced for the first time in six days. Canada is also a metallic commodity exporter, and as the copper advanced together with stocks in Europe, the loonie advanced significantly versus the greenback in a rather calm trading session due to a bank holiday in the United States. Commodities and equities rates fueled by risk appetite are maintaining the Canadian currency among the best performers this year in foreign-exchange markets.

Analysts remain very confident that the rally in commodities will set the loonie to parity with its U.S. counterpart at some point this year, as the global economic recovery is likely to push the oil and metals up, as manufacturing sectors in Canada’s main trading partners are increasing demand for raw materials by the day.

USD/CAD traded at 1.0254 as of 14:49 GMT from a previous rate of 1.0293 when markets opened yesterday. CAD/JPY advanced to 88.44 from 88.07.

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The U.K. currency may be experience a shift on its sentiment as speculations suggest that the current quantitative easing measures used by the nation’s central bank will be terminated, as the country starts to publish positive economic reports, suggesting that the recession may be ending in the British Isles.

This week will be decisive for the pound as inflation yearly numbers are due to be published the next Tuesday, and if forecasts will be confirmed, the numbers are expected to surpass Bank of England’s target below 2 percent for the first time in seven months, fueling even further speculations that quantitative easing measures will be lifted in the U.K. anytime soon this year. The 200 billion pounds used for bond purchasing will have their last part of 25 billion to be used by early February, and the next central bankers’ meeting may already bring better news for the sterling if the country’s monetary policy change its direction.

The pound has been suffering from an insistent recession combined with a struggling financial system and ineffective policies taken by the Bank of England to combat the crisis, but as economic data improves, the pound may advance considerably, since it was one of the currencies who lost the most among the main traded ones in foreign-exchange markets last year.

GBP/USD traded at 1.6277 as of 02:20 GMT from a previous rate of 1.6256 when markets closed last Friday.

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The Swedish krona ended this week gaining versus the European single currency as Greek’s budget deficit is once again affecting the outlook for the euro, which also declined versus most of the main traded currencies in

foreign-exchange markets.

The krona ended this week with a third consecutive day of gains versus the euro after Greece’s deteriorating economic health is raising concern towards traders regarding the Eurozone, after European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet affirmed that member countries will not have any privileges.

EUR/SEK ended the week at 10.17 from 10.22 on Monday when markets opened.

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Demand for safety rose today as concerns among investors that Chinese lending limits announced this week by the nation’s government may impact the global economic performance, allowing the yen to beat all of the main traded currencies in

foreign-exchange markets today.

The yen gained today versus greenback as reports in the world’s wealthiest country came slightly below forecasts, also showing a slow down in the inflation. The euro declined sharply versus the Japanese currency as concerns regarding Greek’s budget deficit are still affecting the outlook for the European currency, causing an outflow of capital towards the safety provided by yen-priced assets. China’s lending restrictions will affect not only the Asian economic region, but the economy in a global scale, as Chinese trading is well spread around the world, and these measures can slow down the economic recovery expected for 2010.

Traders became more risk averse with the new Chinese banking policy, and that’s positive for the yen, according to specialists. The yen had been trading at record lows versus commodity related currencies like the Canadian dollar and the side effects of Chinese statements gave a breather for the Japanese currency.

EUR/JPY traded at 130.57 as of 16:01 GMT from an intraday rate of 131.85. AUD/JPY declined to 83.83 from 84.80

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Once again interest rates are fueling a rally for the Aussie dollar as it happened in the second half of the last year, when the South Pacific currency ranked among the best performing options in

foreign-exchange markets.

Positive employment data published in Australia this Wednesday is helping the Aussie to rally to high levels versus most of the main traded currencies, as a declining unemployment rate, currently at 5.5 percent and much better than other key-economic regions in the world, is fueling speculations that interest rates will be once again hiked in the country next month.

AUD/USD traded at 0.9315 as of 00:11 GMT from a previous intraday rate of 0.9241.

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Risk aversion declined significantly today after China set a new reserves requirements for banks in the country, allowing the yen to outperform all of the 16 main traded currencies in

foreign-exchange markets, as pessimism surged.

Equities markets in Asia and globally declined today, raising demand for the yen, as China set a minimum of 16 percent of reserves that large banking corporations in the country must have, in order to avoid a credit bubble as the one that caused the global slump in late 2008. The yen is considered the safest refuge in currency markets for turbulent times and benefited from today’s negative scenario, as China’s policy decreased demand for high-yielding assets, which were trading high since the beginning of the year. The Australian dollar posted the sharpest losses versus the Japanese currency as loan approvals in the real estate sector declined.

China’s strict regulations declined optimism that were fueling demand for higher-yielding since the last week, according to analysts. The yen had declined significantly after several sessions losing versus most currencies, as today’s shift in markets sentiment was a good opportunity for it to level up.

AUD/JPY fell to 84.23 as of 15:45 GMT from a previous rate of 85.53 in the intraday comparison. CAD/JPY followed the same trend at 87.72 from 89.08.

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After the SNB stated its position against further advances of its national currency, the Swiss Franc may be poised to decline versus main currencies, as fears of interventions are likely to shun investors from investing in the

franc-priced assets.

The Swiss franc gained during the late months of the last year versus the euro and the dollar, posting its highest monthly advance in December versus the European single currency in 2009, and trading in parity with the greenback in November, as the Swiss economy showed its strength and resilience, and declining odds of deflation were interpreted as a good chance for the currency to gain in foreign-exchange markets. Today, after months of silence, the Swiss National Bank stated through its officials that its currency appreciation would have been gone to far, and that further fluctuations of the Swiss franc will be monitored by central bankers, indicating that a further advance of the franc may be halted by more than just verbal interventions.

Speculations regarding future interventions in the Swiss currency rates open a good trading possibility for selling the franc versus other currencies, specially higher-yielding ones, as SNB’s position took today will not allow the franc to advance much further, declining attractiveness for the franc among the main currency pairs.

USD/CHF traded at 1.0169 as of 00:49 GMT from 1.0140 in the intraday, being rather unchanged following the SNB statement.

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The U.K. currency extended Friday’s gains versus the U.S. dollar today as global optimism helped speculations that an economic recovery in the U.K. will make its currency more attractive in

foreign-exchange markets.

A business report published today by a private company in the U.K. indicated that confidence regarding economic conditions has improved substantially in an annual comparison, helping the pound to post another day of gains versus the greenback after a Chinese trading report suggested that the global economic recovery expected for 2010 is so far being confirmed, as both exports and imports climbed in China.

GBP/USD traded at 1.6111 as of 23:08 GMT from 1.6069 when markets opened yesterday.

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The Canadian currency started another week strong versus several main traded currencies, specially lower yielding options, as demand for commodities continues to bring capital to Canada, the biggest oil supplier for the United States.

The rising demand for energetic and metallic commodities is helping the loonie to remain as one of the best bets in foreign-exchange markets in the beginning of 2010, as commodities exports are responsible for around 50 percent of Canada’s international trading capital inflows. This Monday, the Canadian currency gave another step towards parity with its U.S. counterpart, despite retreating later, trading at the highest level in almost three months, as the global economic recovery is providing support for traders to take further risks raising equities rates, which also have a strong correlation with Canada’s currency price.

Analysts are very confident regarding the loonie’s strength as no fundamental or technical factor is so far being an obstacle for its advance. The Bank of Canada may, at some point, halt its currency rally, as it had already done it in late 2009, alleging that a strong currency may affect the country’s exports, and consequently, its recovery.

USD/CAD currently trades at 1.0306 as of 14:17 GMT after bottoming at 1.0250 two hours earlier, and from as high as 1.0372 last Friday.

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The Polish currency advanced today in

foreign-exchange markets as Pimco speculates that 2010 will allow several emerging markets to outperform other investments, favoring the zloty in this Friday’s trading session.

The zloty benefited from statements coming from the largest bond fund in the world, Pacific Investment Management Co., which predicted better returns in 2010 for zloty-priced assets, as well as investments in Mexico and South Korea, helping their currencies to rally as well.

EUR/PLN declined in the week comparison despite 4 days of consecutive gains before this Friday when it closed at 4.0688.

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The Canadian dollar returned to gain today as its chief export, the crude oil, rallied as demand for energy increases, favoring currencies with a similar profile in

foreign-exchange markets as the Australian dollar, which is a main commodity supplier for China.

The loonie, as the Canadian dollar is often referred, had the fourth day of advances in this week as the crude oil returned to trade high in commodity markets closing future contracts near $ 83 a barrel, helping the Canadian dollar to rally specially versus its U.S. counterpart as frustrating employment data declined attractiveness for the greenback during most of today’s session in North America. Commodity’s strength are pushing a new rally for the loonie which may eventually climb towards parity with the U.S. dollar, as long as this market scenario remains the same.

The Canadian dollar has being one of the most attractive currencies in the beginning of 2010 as its correlation to commodities and equities markets has been fueled the loonie’s rally since last December. The loonie may touch parity with the U.S. dollar in the following weeks if the Bank of Canada doesn’t intervene on its rally with statements or actual measures.

USD/CAD closed today at 1.0293 from a previous intraday rate of 1.0348. CAD/JPY remained neutral after high volatility at 89.94.

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The pound maintained its downward trend yesterday, losing a further 0.6% as a British report cast doubts over UK recovery prospects.

• The outlook for global monetary policy shaped action on the foreign exchange markets on Monday, with sterling the main casualty.
• A report from the Centre for Economics and Business Research predicted that UK interest rates would remain at their historic low of 0.5% through 2010. The report also forecast they would stay below 2% until 2014.
• That would be likely to leave sterling the lowest-yielding major currency at a time when interest rates outside the UK look set to start rising, which added selling pressure to the fragile pound.
• In trading this morning, the UK currency has continued to lose ground, with a positive housing price survey failing to buoy demand.
• Sterling may find some support today should the Consumer Price Index reveal a slightly higher inflation rate at 09:30BST. Gains may be short lived however, with forecasts predicting an upbeat German economic sentiment survey, figures of which are released at 10:00BST.

The single currency hit a two-week low against the greenback yesterday as a rise in risk aversion strengthened demand for the haven currency.

• The dollar rose for a second day as evidence that economies have yet to shake off the worst effects of the global recession spurred demand for the safety of the U.S. currency.
• Russia’s central bank cut its main interest rate, signaling that things are not as positive as they appeared previously, and spurring demand for the dollar.
• The greenback also found support following a disappointing US consumer confidence survey, which cautioned investors in their risk appetite.
• Comments from ECB President also weighed on the euro, with Trichet saying that he was in favour of the argument for a strong US dollar in the foreign exchange markets.
• The remarks were reflective of a concern regarding the strength of the single currency on the eurozone economic recovery.
• This morning, the single currency has stretched back over 1.46 as risk sentiment returns to the market, diminishing demand for the dollar.