The U.S. dollar steadied on Thursday after sliding to its lowest in almost a year against major currencies this week, but is seen vulnerable to further selling.

The dollar initially fell versus the euro after a better-than-expected reading on U.S. weekly jobless claims but recovered a little groun das U.S. and European stocks failed to extend earlier gains.

The U.S. currency has suffered recently as investors bet on an economic recovery through commodity-linked and higher-yielding currencies, which rallied earlier this week.

“Some caution has returned to the foreign exchange markets today, and the dollar is mixed,” said Nick Bennenbroek, head of currency strategy at Wells Fargo Bank in New York. Still, Bennenbroek warned that Thursday’s rebound in the U.S. currency may be short-lived.

“Dollar sentiment is still fragile, and the path of least resistance for the dollar is still clearly to the downside in the near term,” he said.

In midday trading in New York,

No currency movement to speak of… Buffett calls out the deficits… PIMCO does too! SNB selling francs to stem gains… nd Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Good day… And a Wonderful Wednesday to you! Another day with the medicine in my knee and it feels better yet today… I did have to ice it last night though, I guess I’m still not out of the woods here, but I can see the exit!

There was very little in the way of movement in the currencies yesterday. The euro moved to 1.4150, but was brought back down

Obama defends his policies…Commodity currencies should outperform…Global Power Shift Index…And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Good day… And happy Thursday to everyone! Hope everyone made it through the ‘hump day’ with no worries. We started the morning here with rainshowers, but it ended up being a beautiful afternoon and evening. Currency markets were similar to the weather here, as most currencies started Wednesday in the loss column vs. the US$, but rallied as the day progressed. The dollar had strengthened over the past couple of days due to ’safe haven’ demand; but a surprisingly strong durable goods number (ex autos) combined with an ‘all clear’ signal from President Barack Obama had investors moving back into riskier assets. The commodity based currencies also got a boost as China signaled it would maintain an accommodative policy, easing speculation that the Bank of China would try to rein in bank lending. Lots to cover today, so

Home sales improve…  Are we there yet…  Intervention talks…  Buying on dips… And Now… Today’s Pfennig! Good day…and a Fabulous Friday to you. As I was sitting here this morning collecting my thoughts, it just hit me like a ton of bricks that we’re already towards the end of July and next weekend brings us into August…where’s the pause button when you need it. Anyway, yesterday started out like any other quiet morning so far this week but we did see a nice little run in the currencies only to see profit taking as we moved into the late afternoon. As I turned the computer screens on this morning, I see where the overnight markets brought us right back up to the levels we began with this time yesterday. The big story that moved the markets was the better than expected housing numbers that, again, gave investors that warm and fuzzy feeling that I

Risk aversion has left the building…  CIT survives without Fed help…  SNB tries to fight the markets…  Light week for US data… And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Good day… We had just an amazing weekend of weather here in St. Louis, and this morning is shaping up to be another beautiful day. Friday turned out to be a beautiful day for those who have taken our advice and diversified their holdings out of the dollar. Risk aversion was placed on the back burner again, and investors moved money back out of the dollar into higher yielding currencies. The dollar and yen got sold but all other currencies rallied, and investors also turned back toward gold pushing the metal above $950 for the first time in over a month.

So what caused all of this confidence? First, the housing data released Friday morning in the US showed a slight pick up in both building permits and housing starts.

“Words from the Wise” this week comes to you in a shortened format as I do not have access to my normal research resources while on the road in Europe (also see my post “Gone A.W.O.L. - to Slovenia and Switzerland“). Although very little commentary is provided, a full dose of excerpts from interesting news items and quotes from market commentators is included.

While investors’ hopes of an economic recovery might have got ahead of reality, the cartoonists continually reminded us of worrisome issues …

Source: Signe Wilkinson, Washington Post,  June 18, 2009.

The past week’s performance of the major asset classes is summarized by the chart below - a mixed bag so to speak.

Source: StockCharts.com

A summary of

This week’s video-o-rama comes to you a day late as I make my away from Cape Town to Europe. Notwithstanding terribly slow broadband at South African airports, I have managed to compile an interesting potpourri of clips.

Topics ranged from another round of discussions about the proposed regulatory reform to Fed chairman Ben Bernanke facing a grilling on Capital Hill over the Bank of America-Merrill Lynch deal to the usual dose of debate on the outlook for the economy and financial markets.

The stars of this week’s round-up include Steven Pearlstein, Pete Peterson, Warren Buffett (US economy in “shambles”), Nouriel Roubini (US economy “sort of stabilizing”), Puru Saxena, Edmund Phelps, Mohamed El-Erian, Robert Prechter (a “lot more” bear market) and T. Boone Pickens.

The compilation kicks of with Barry Ritholtz, author of must-read “Bailout Nation” and editor of The Big Picture blog, sharing his views on

Fed confuses markets, risk assets get sold…  SNB intervenes to stop franc’s rise… ECB issues 12-month liquidity… Bernanke to get grilled? And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Good day… And a Tub Thumpin’ Thursday to you! Yes, I know the currencies and commodities got whipsawed yesterday, and my Cardinals got spanked, but that’s no reason for us to not enjoy a Tub Thumpin’ Thursday! Every day is a gift, and it has nothing to do with stocks, bonds, currencies, and commodities!

OK… Not that I try to be philosophical, sometimes it just comes out that way! Besides, you don’t want to think that I’m just a smart *** all the time! HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Well, as I said in the open, the currencies and commodities got whipsawed yesterday, and the culprit was the FOMC minutes… You see, the Fed Reserve met to discuss rates, and other items. And what they said just blew away the bond vigilantes, and really ticked off

Oil prices fell on Wednesday as the stronger dollar and rising U.S. product stocks outweighed supply concerns from Nigeria.

U.S. gasoline stocks rose by 3.9 million barrels in the week to June 19, well above analysts’ forecasts, as refiners cranked up output in the midst of the summer driving season.

Distillate stocks hit 10-year highs, while crude stocks showed a steep drop.

U.S. crude traded down 55 cents to $68.69 per barrel at 2:00 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT), reversing earlier gains. London Brent crude fell 49 cents to $68.31 a barrel.

“Crude futures are back down on the weight of a stronger dollar,” said Mark Waggoner, Excel Futures President from Huntington Beach, California. “The EIA inventory report also showed large increases in gasoline and distillate stocks and that’s dragging down crude.”

The U.S. dollar rose broadly and jumped against the Swiss franc as traders reported the Swiss National Bank was intervening in the market by selling the