Photo by yoppy

What a difference a year has made.

At the start of 2009, all was dark and gloomy amidst the greatest financial crisis the world has seen.

Now, in 2010, there seemed to be a lot of optimism, at least among the people I spoke to who are starting to invest into stocks again.

Ironically, those who have made the most money would be those who have invested in the depth of the crisis and held on to their holdings.

The stock market is driven largely by sentiment and if sentiments change, the direction of the market can also change.

What are some factors that can threaten to trigger a change in sentiment?

Unwinding of US Dollar Carry Trade

The US dollar, forsaken just a few weeks ago, has staged a remarkable rebound since the starting of December 2009. Nearly everyone was bearish on the USD back then and it has appreciated nearly 5% against both the euro and the Japanese yen. Read more…