GBPCAD – Hourly Individually, both the British Pound and the Canadian Dollar have surged in recent trading sessions, appearing relatively strong against their peers in the short-term. With the latest fundamental data suggesting both currencies have benefited from similar economic drivers, it could be tough to navigate a directional bias for GBPCAD, as we'll discuss in today's Chart of The Day. Firstly, as the markets come to grip the idea that the Bank of England will seek to avoid cutting interest rates into negative territory, the Pound should continue to gather momentum along with positive reports of vaccine rollouts around the country.

Similarly, the Bank of Canada has also dismissed talks of negative rates and reaps the rewards of recent steadiness in global oil prices. At around $58 per barrel, we're seeing the highest oil prices in just over a year. And with further potential production cuts earmarked for Saudi Arabia, the commodity-sensitive CAD could see additional gains.

Technically speaking, Sterling does appear to have the slight upper hand from a longer-term trend perspective. However, in the short-term, the hourly chart shown looks bearish. We might be witnessing more corrective moves or some profit-taking activity following last week's sharp advance to higher levels instead of specific CAD demand.

This idea neatly ties in with the recent bearish divergence pattern highlighted on the RSI indicator above. A further sell-off on the hourly could target the current weekly pivot point (gold line), located at 1.7475. Looking at the price action during the past few weeks, it has a habit of utilising weekly pivots as critical support areas.

For example, not only did GBPCAD test last week's pivot of 1.7500 multiple times, but it even touched January's final pivot with pinpoint accuracy, reaching exactly 1.7350 before rebounding upwards. To the upside, the pair continues to find resistance around the early 1.76 regions, but as mentioned before, these trends display a more bullish bias when viewed longer-term. So despite all the factors contributing to a favourable condition for the Canadian Dollar, the Pound edges ahead in dominance as 2021's top-performing G10 currency thus far.

Given its momentum, any weakness is probably likely to be viewed as temporary, with traders eyeing the dips in price as possible opportunities to go long. Sources: Go Markets, Meta Trader 5, TradingView, Bloomberg

To begin the week, I thought we'd do something a little bit different. We have taken the current ten-year challenge sweeping social media and tried to apply it to a brief technical analysis summary of the major FX pairs. Where were they trading in early 2009?

And where are they now? Judging by the list below, it would seem gold wins the gold medal regarding overall performance. The following summaries will delve further into each trading pair.

EURUSD Even though current price action is trading just above the 200 MA suggesting the longer-term trend is bullish, the price action since 2009 provides more significant evidence of a strong downtrend in place, most notably the lower highs witnessed in 2009, 2011, 2014 and last year respectively. Following the rather dull consolidative period between 2015 to 2017, the Euro-Dollar pair has shown a new lease of life and has found the 1.25 level to play a significant role once again. At current levels though, the danger here is that we could slip back into the familiar rangebound territory if the supportive structure seen at 1.14 fails to contain sellers going forward.

The highlighted head and shoulders pattern might be a precursor to a EURUSD reversal back towards the 1.05 lows. GBPUSD Surprisingly, only a 5% difference in value since this time ten years ago. We see mostly rangebound moves since 2009, with the Brexit catalyst in 2016 providing fuel for an extended step down in price.

The recovery from 2017 to the beginning of 2018 may give a clue to future movements within the pair. Notice how the price has respected the 200 MA in recent years, it would appear the region of 1.35 could be a potential barrier if tested, resulting in a continuation of the longer-term downtrend. In this scenario, the previous 1.20 support is a target worth considering.

USDJPY In 2009 the Dollar-Yen pairing appeared somewhat heavy towards the downside. However, we've seen a steady recovery since the 2012 lows, and a validated bullish trendline is currently in play. In December last year, price attempted a sharp move down to 104 levels but was quickly rejected, resulting in further Dollar strength.

Key areas to note are the Fibonacci retracements of the 2015 high including the 50% level which has provided strong support around 100.00 and the 23.6% retracement at 113.80 which continues to act as tough resistance. Perhaps we'll see another rally north to re-test 113.80 longer-term, especially when RSI (Relative Strength Index) levels are looking oversold. AUDUSD Like a boomerang that's been thrown and come back, the Aussie has returned to where it began in 2009 following some large swings higher.

Currently, in a residual downtrend, it's difficult to see where this pair may up longer-term, but the key takeaway over the last decade would be the importance of the 0.70 zone regarding support and resistance levels. USDCAD It is also a case of 'Back To The Future' for the Loonie. Despite some significant price moves over time, current levels are almost identical to those seen this time ten years ago.

Technically still within a longer-term uptrend, price action has maintained a presence around the 200 MA and has produced a textbook series of higher highs and lower lows since mid-2017. It is also worth pointing out that the 50% retracement level near the 1.20 mark has provided strong support for the pair in both 2015 and 2017. The future outlook appears to be indecisive moves heading sideways.

USDCHF Not too much change for the Swissie either since 2009. Following the SNB crisis in 2015, price action has been practically non-existent with 1.03 acting as somewhat of a ceiling slowly squeezing the price into submission. We could either see a massive breakout after this extended consolidation phase or perhaps more of the same longer-term.

NZDUSD An impressive 36% gain since 2009. Longer-term we have settled around the 50% Fibonacci retracement level of the Jun 2014 high. Current levels also coincide with the 200 Moving Average which price action has failed to break above in recent years convincingly.

There is still a slight bias to the downside, and the previous support level of 0.62 could be a potential target should the Kiwi Dollar continue to grind lower. XAUUSD An impressive price rise in the last decade for the precious metal, and similar to Kiwi Dollar, current price action is sitting around the 50% Fibonacci retracement level from the August 2011 high. The overall longer-term trend has been sideways since 2013 with no clear directional bias in sight.

The only thing worth noting here is the current RSI situation which appears overbought and could spell some bearish activity in the weeks and months ahead. This article is written by a GO Markets Analyst and is based on their independent analysis. They remain fully responsible for the views expressed as well as any remaining error or omissions.

Trading Forex and Derivatives carries a high level of risk. For more resource on Forex trading check out our Forex Trading For Beginners introduction, Forex Trading Courses, open a Forex Demo Account or open a live Forex Trading Account. Sources: Go Markets MetaTrader, Google, Datawrapper, Tradingview.

Facebook has had a fair share of negative news headlines in recent times with lawsuits filed against the company and calls to improve the monitoring of information that is posted on the social media platform. Despite that, the share price of Facebook hit an all-time high this week after trading at above $314 per share for the first time during the trading day on Thursday. With the negative headlines, there is also a level of optimism about the future of the company with revenue numbers expected to increase in 2021.

Q4 2020– revenue growth Last year, the company saw a substantial slowdown in revenue growth in Q2 due to the COVID-19 pandemic when it saw a significant reduction in its advertising side of the business. However, Q4 revenue rose by 33% year-over-year, a significant increase from 22% growth in Q3 and 11% in Q2. ''This was a strong quarter for our business, as the acceleration of online commerce we’ve seen during the pandemic continued into the holiday season. Our total revenue for Q4 was $28.1 billion, which is a 33% year-over-year increase.

Our fastest growth rate in over two years. After a really difficult year for so many businesses, this holiday period was important. And while many businesses are still struggling, the good news is that Q4 was stronger than expected for retail'', Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s COO explained Q4 performance during its earning call back in January.

The share price is up by around 14% since the beginning of the year. Facebook – YTD Source: TradingView Price target increase Deutsche Bank recently increased their price target for Facebook from $355 to $385 and maintained a ''buy'' rating for the social media giant following positive feedback from advertisers and Mark Zuckerberg’s positive comments about more e-commerce moving onto the platform. Deutsche Bank data checks show that advertisers have continued to spend on the platform in Q1 of 2021.

Facebook report Q1 2021 earnings on 28 th April. You can trade Facebook (FB) and many other stocks from the ASX, NYSE, and the NASDAQ with GO Markets as a Share CFD. Click here for more information.

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2020 was a good year for electric car space. We have seen shares of most electric car makers surge considerably and take steps to take the industry to the next level, most notably Tesla and NIO. Top 5 automakers by market cap* Tesla at $790.53 billion Toyota at $209.83 billion NIO at $97.21 billion BYD at $94.21 billion Volkswagen at $92.80 billion *As of 13/1/21 Source: Companies Market Cap Tesla The share price of the World's largest electric car maker (by market cap) Tesla rose above $700 at the end of last year, and it has continued to climb up to above $800 per share.

The recent price surge made Elon Musk the richest person in the World at $202 billion, passing Amazon owner Jeff Bezos. Goldman Sachs recently raised their price target for the stock from $455 to $780, keeping its rating at ''neutral'' despite the price target upgrade. ''We believe that the shift toward battery electric vehicle adoption is accelerating and will occur faster than our prior view'' they added. On the other hand, JPMorgan sees the share price plummeting by 87% to 90% a share in 2021.

Tesla stock is "in our view and by virtually every conventional metric not only overvalued but dramatically so," a team of JPMorgan analysts led by Ryan Brinkman said last month. The share price is currently trading at around the $854 level, up by 16% since the beginning of the year. Tesla are set to report earnings on 2/2/21.

NIO Tesla was not the only electric car maker making headlines in 2020. NIO, the Chinese electric car manufacturer also made moves in the electric vehicle (EV) space. The share price of the ''Chinese Tesla'' rose by around 1,110% last year, making it one of the best performing large-cap stocks of the year.

There are a few reasons why the stock has risen recently. The company recently announced its first luxury sedan - ET7. The new model will start at $69,000 and have will an estimated driving range of 620 miles on a full charge, according to the company.

NIO also announced that it is teaming up with Nvidia and Qualcomm. Following the latest news, JPMorgan announced that they have increased their price target for the ''Chinese Tesla'' from $40 to $75 per share. The share price is currently trading at around the $62 level, up by 16% since the beginning of the year.

Tesla are set to report earnings on 9/3/21. The electric vehicle industry is expected to grow in the coming years with many countries around the World announcing bans on selling new petrol and diesel cars in the next decade. You can trade Tesla (TSLA) and NIO (NIO) and many other stocks from the ASX, NYSE, and the NASDAQ with GO Markets as a Share CFD.

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The US Dollar is the most traded currency in the world and paired with all other major currencies. It acts as the intermediary in triangular currency transactions, held by almost every central bank around the world. Unofficially, US Dollar utilization occurs in over 30 countries worldwide and officially; it gets used as a legitimate currency in eight other places around the world.

Let’s find out who those countries are. East Timor East Timor is a sovereign state in Maritime Southeast Asia, north of Australia. It became a sovereign state on 20th May 2002.

Capital: Dili Population: 1,242,000 (2017) Official language(s): Tetum, Portuguese Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $2.9 billion (2017) Ecuador Another country that uses the US Dollar as an official currency is Ecuador. The South American nation adopted the US Dollar as the official currency in January 2001. It is the seventh largest economy in South America, and it is also a member of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

Capital: Quito Population: 16,390,000 (2016) Official language: Spanish Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $103 billion (2017) El Salvador El Salvador, the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America is another country that is using US Dollar as an official currency. It has the largest economy in Central America and the only Central American nation without a Caribbean coastline. Capital: San Salvador Population: 6,345,000 (2016) Official language: Spanish Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $24 billion (2017) Palau Historically knows as Belau, Palaos and Pelew the country is made up from around 340 islands and is located in the western Pacific Ocean.

It is the 180th largest country in the world at 465 square kilometres, and it has one of smallest economies in the world. Capital: Ngerulmud Population: 21,503 (2016) Official language(s): English, Palauan Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $291 million (2017) Marshall Islands The Republic of the Marshall Islands is an island country near the equator in the Pacific Ocean. It is worlds 189th largest country regarding land area with 181 square kilometers.

The islands have a few natural resources, and their imports far exceed their exports. Capital: Majuro Population: 53,066 (2016) Official language(s): English, Marshallese Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $199 million (2017) Micronesia The Federated States of Micronesia is an independent sovereign nation and the United States associated state, so it is no surprise they use the Dollar as an official currency. The area is made up from around 600 islands, and it does not share any land borders.

Capital: Palikir Population: 104,937 (2016) Official language: English Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $336 million (2017) Panama Officially known as the Republic of Panama is a country in Central America bordering Columbia and Costa Rica. Panama has two official currencies – Panamanian Balboa (PAB) and the US Dollar. Since 1904, the Dollar has circulated in the Central American nation.

Capital: Panama City Population: 4,043,000 (2016) Official language: Spanish Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $61 billion (2017) Zimbabwe Zimbabwe is a landlocked country in the south of Africa, bordering Zambia, Mozambique, Botswana, and South Africa. The African nation experienced significant economic downfall under their previous president Robert Mugabe, and their currency was virtually worthless. In 2008, in the midst of a financial crisis, Zimbabwe got rid of their money and adopted the American Dollar.

Capital: Harare Population: 16,150,000 (2016) Official language(s): 16 languages including English, Chewa, and Shona Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $17 billion (2017) By Klāvs Valters ( Market Analyst) This article is written by a GO Markets Analyst and is based on their independent analysis. They remain fully responsible for the views expressed as well as any remaining error or omissions. Trading Forex and Derivatives carries a high level of risk.

Canada News Flying Under The Radar Canada has been a predominant feature in financial news in the recent few months, with many discussions centered around the NAFTA and ‘new NAFTA’ agreement, the USMCA trade deal. But despite being such a significant story, it has arguably been overshadowed by the big moves in equity markets, Brexit negotiation drama and the trouble in emerging markets, i.e., Turkey, Brazil, and even Italy’s budget woes. So with the Canadian central bank, BoC, expectedly hiking rates a by 25 basis points on Wednesday 24th October, we decided to give Canada its time in the limelight it deserves and take a look at the Canadian economy.

For more information on the BoC rate decision, take a look at our Analyst Klavs’ article right here - > The Bank of Canada Rate Decision. USDCAD Chart - BoC Tax Hike causes 100pip drop before trend continues Canadian Currency Moves And Economic Stance Perhaps the best place to start would be to address the most recent price swings in the Canadian Dollar and some of the driving forces behind it. In the chart above, we saw a 100pip push lower in the USDCAD (USD weakening, CAD strengthening) on the back of the BoC’s decision to hike rates by a further 25 basis points to 1.75%.

Now despite the highly anticipated nature of this announcement, it’s the overtly hawkish comments from the executive committee members that perpetuated the move lower in the pair. So what was said and what does it mean for Canada going forward? Let’s begin with rates as that was the initial stimulus in the move.

BoC’s Wilkins, the Senior Deputy Governor, stated that “Policy Rate will need to rise to a neutral stance to achieve inflation target” that the BoC “Don’t have a preordained rate path” and that the “pace of rate hikes is dependent on the inflation outlook.” In short, this translates to the stance that most Central banks seem to be adopting and that is an accommodative and data dependent bias. Meaning that while their long-term goal remains the same, i.e., raising the rate to preserve the value of money by keeping inflation low, stable and predictable, the timing with which they are willing to make changes is flexible and the comments from both Wilkins as Governor Poloz support this. Poloz went on to state that the removal of the word ‘Gradual’ from monetary policy forward guidance “Permits us to raise rates at a faster or slower pace depending on developments.” This statement helped to perpetuate the move higher in the Canadian Dollar because it demonstrated that Canada’s government is taking the action it needs to maintain its mandate and not blindly sticking to a set term of rate hikes regardless of momentary data blips.

Canadian Dollar Crosses Overlay - Shows Canadian Strength across the board during comments Trade Agreements And Policies The next aspect we’ll take a look at is the elephant in the room, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Our analyst Deepta takes an extensive look at USMCA here - USMCA - NAFTA 2.0 – and what it means for Canada, so what I want to focus on is BoC’s Wilkins’ comments. She states that the Canadian “Economy is becoming more resilient.” And that “USMCA reduces uncertainty,” and that fact alone is good news, Governor Poloz does also state the caveat that “Tensions between US & China could hit Canadian export growth.” Since the comments, the USD/CAD rate has seen quite a bit of activity however it has not moved much from where it was beforehand.

The market seems to be interpreting the hawkish comments from the BoC members regarding both rates and USMCA as positive for the Canadian Economy and is pricing it in accordingly. Are Canadian Stock Markets In Trouble? Amid the recent ‘Global Stock Rout’ the S&P TSX ended October down 6.51% following a somewhat hard month.

However, during this risk-off flight to safety, the S&P TSX Index may have had its pain exacerbated by the heavy makeup of energy companies populating the Canadian index. As discussed in previous articles - Oil - Can basic Economics be responsible for an 11% decline – Oil has seen some very aggressive sell-offs. Current market conditions have the commodity breaking below the $50 a barrel level amid supply concerns and growing global tensions.

Keep in mind with Canada’s energy companies occupying an 18.6% weighting of the S&P TSX; undoubtedly this has been a weight around the Index’s neck dragging it lower. Contrary Views To The Health Of Canada's TSX Index Chief Investment Strategist for BMO Capital Markets, Brian Belski stated that the similar declines were seen in 2012 & 2014 (of 11.5% and 12.5% respectively) on average saw rebounds of 18.22%. And he considers this particular sell-off as no different given that it was a flight to safety out of equities and that the major US indices led the TSX's decline.

RBC Global Asset Management chief economist Eric Lascelles mirrored this sentiment and stated that despite the reason decline and consumer concern over rising interest rates, the Canadian Economy is healthy and he cannot see it declining further into bear territory. Lascelles also says that instead of fearfully selling off, investors should seek opportunities to buy as the stock market dips since the financial crisis have typically unwound quickly. So with proactive steps being taken by the Canadian central bank and consensus for a turn around in the Canadian stock market, we could be looking a further strengthening in both the Canadian Economy and potentially the Canadian currency crosses — certainly ones to consider for the watchlist over the coming months with the next BoC decision taking place on December 6th.

For more information or any questions feel free to reach out to me on twitter – @Alex_GoMarkets This article is written by a GO Markets Analyst and is based on their independent analysis. They remain fully responsible for the views expressed as well as any remaining error or omissions. Trading Forex and Derivatives carries a high level of risk.