Press Room
PFGBEST® Research Posts Midyear Commodities Outlook
CHICAGO, July 8, 2010 – PFGBEST, one of the nation’s largest
non-clearing Futures Commission Merchants (FCMs), has updated its annual
PFGBEST Research Outlook 2010 to reflect changes and news events that occurred
since January into their analysis for the second half of 2010.
“I will let the PFGBEST Research experts tell you market by market
what some of the trading opportunities and challenges are,” said PFGBEST
President and Chief Operating Officer Russ Wasendorf, Jr. in his cover letter
to clients. He referred to events such as the U.S. Federal Reserve Board’s
delicate, historic high wire act, the 2010 Euro crisis, the BP oil spill
off the shore of Louisiana in the Gulf of Mexico, and emerging weather patterns.
In the PFGBEST Research Outlook 2010, published at the start of the year,
PFGBEST leaders had forecast a potential globally cataclysmic event that
could emanate from debt-ridden nations and businesses all around, which
of course, did occur.
Some highlights from the PFGBEST Research Outlook 2010 Midyear Update:
- After expanding at a 3.4% pace during the second quarter, real GDP growth
in the U.S. is expected to slow to a mere 2% in the second half
- The Fed will be looking for consistent increases in non-farm payroll
and continued drops in the unemployment rate before it raises rates…doubtful
until about June of 2010
- First half 2010 is referred to as the “flight to quality rally”
as speculators fled risky trades and looked to safety and stability in the
U.S. dollar, Treasuries, securities and precious metals
- Reform to bring the U.S. budget deficit down will likely require a mixture
of higher taxes, reduced benefits and tougher eligibility requirements,
all of which will darken investors’ moods
- Specific geo-political tensions are fueling stresses between North and
South Korea, Israel and Palestine, and along the Iran/Iraq border, conditions
that fuel bullish momentum in gold
- Oil prices are artificially stimulated and could fall hard when global
central bank financial maneuvers are limited or halted
- The worst hurricane season since 2005 is forecast by the normally conservative
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association
- Large, trend-following funds hold near-record short positions in some
grains, although strong export demand psychology flourishes
- If July and August are both hotter and drier than expected in the U.S.,
grains could rally sharply
- Consumers may resist beef prices at the grocer and reduce demand
- Debt contagion in the Euro Zone could soften global demand for some
luxury commodities like cocoa, as 16 of the top 20 cocoa-consuming nations
are European
- In an all-new “Institutional View” from PFGBEST Forex New
York, there are some trades with great risk/reward potential in second-tier
currency markets, such as the New Zealand dollar, the Chinese yuan, and
the Swedish krona.
Anyone can visit www.PFGBEST.com to register for their FREE, electronic
version of the PFGBEST Research Outlook 2010 Midyear Update. PFGBEST Research
analysts are available for interviews daily.
PFGBEST is a rapidly-expanding global financial services and technology
firm, specializing in electronic trading, futures, forex, options, and managed
accounts. The company is also an industry leader in investor education,
and it offers numerous free webinars each week attended by hundreds of people
wishing to further their knowledge and skill in trading, charting, comprehending
various government reports, enriching their understanding of trading psychology,
and many other topics.
Media Contact: Patricia Campbell pcampbell@pfgbest.com 312-775-3411