The 12th Annual Forex Forum in London was a two day event packed with keynote addresses, panels and workshops from the industry’s experts. Investors, risk managers, leading economists, bankers and service providers, from across Europe joined together to two days of stimulating debate and discussion on the latest developments in the foreign exchange markets.
Jonathan Fenby opened the conference with a keynote speech addressing ‘China's Unfinished Revolution’ and the country’s prospects in this year of leadership change. With some fascinating analysis and keen assessment of the latest developments in the country, Jonathan provided a perfect start to the day. The rest of day one focused on the G3 currencies. The ever increasing influence of monetary policy and its impact on the foreign exchange markets was the theme of the opening panel. Our panel of experts debated the pros, cons and consequences of the latest actions of the BoJ, ECB and the Fed and concluded that the influence of central banks was only likely to increase in this year of political change. Our lead sponsors then hosted a series of workshops which gave our delegates to chance to hear from the industry’s leading figures on their areas of expertise.
Andrew Sentence, former External Member of the MPC, delivered a keynote address in the afternoon. Andrew examined the ‘New Normal’ for the economy and his assessment provided the perfect introduction for the afternoon’s panels, focusing on the Eurozone and the dollar. In the aftermath of the French and Greek elections and with the pending US elections, there was no shortage of exciting and lively debates between the panelists in the afternoon’s sessions. The day concluded with a discussion on FX trading strategies, during which our speakers examined the most effective strategies for trading and generating alpha in the current climate.
The second day of the conference focused on the Emerging Markets and China. Our opening panel discussed the economies of Asia, Latin America and Africa and gave their views on where they saw prospects for growth and which countries provided the best investment opportunities. China was the focus of the penultimate panel of the day. In this year of leadership change, there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding China’s development and the prospects for the yuan. The panellists imparted their knowledge of the situation, and their assessment on where the yuan would go from here. The closing panel focused on the remainder of 2012 and where the currency markets would go from here. Our panellists debated the impact elections would have on the major currency crosses and the continued crisis in the eurozone. Packed full of engaging debate and lively discussions, it was a great end to a very successful conference.
Thank you to all our sponsors, speakers and delegates who made this event possible. We look forward to building upon the success of this event next year.
Presentations available to download:
Morgan Stanley: Investing in FX Volatility as an Asset Class
Nomura: The Yen: Losing safe-Haven status?