Currency Volatility!  Trading Theme creeps back!  ADP indicates a bad Jobs Jamboree…  Putting on my thinking cap…  And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Dollar range bound… German confidence falls… Aussie and NZD continue to slide… US to maintain pressure on Chinese… And Now… Today’s Pfennig!

Good day… Chuck had a rough night, so he decided to stay home and try to get some rest. The Pfennig will be pretty short this morning, as I want to try and get it out as close to the regular time as possible. The currency markets were fairly calm yesterday, with the dollar staying in a pretty tight range before rallying some in early trading this morning.

Once again, the entire world tuned in for the Fed-sponsored dog and pony show this week. As usual, the Fed’s meeting managed to slow market activity before the FOMC decision, and then (drum roll please)…

The US economy is a seriously ill patient and needs more Fed medicine.

This is the latest from Fed policy-maker Dennis Lockhart, president of the Atlanta Fed, according to a report by Reuters.

“It’s clear the economy is in a slowdown that resembles past periods that were the leading edge of a recession,” Lockhart said at a Rotary Club meeting in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

The feds are gearing up to pump another $75 billion into the credit markets, reports Reuters.

The Fed was ready to exchange billions in low-risk U.S. government bonds for underperforming mortgage investments from primary dealers as part of steps announced this month to help them raise capital and to encourage broader lending.

The dollar has finally started to make a comeback, creeping up in yesterday’s trade against major currencies.

Meanwhile, a sharp sell off in commodities sent the Canadian dollar tumbling. The greenback climbed to 1.0102 Canadian dollars, up from 99.21 Canadian cents the previous day.

More Fed cuts are on the way, judging by Fed funds futures.

Fed funds futures price in an 88% chance that the feds will cut rates by another half point in April to 1.75%.

Based on futures trading in Chicago, investor bets had implied a 100% chance of a cut of one percentage point prior to yesterday’s move by Bernanke & Co.

“Behind cheaper credit, inflation fears loom,” says the The Washington Post.

The Fed’s action could … revive inflation, many economists fear. By reducing the interest rate financial institutions charge each other for short-term loans, the Fed makes money more readily and cheaply available. If it miscalculates, it can pump too much money into the economy, fueling excessive demand for goods, housing and capital spending — and driving up prices.

After yesterday’s Fed-inspired rally US futures pointed down this morning, signaling that Wall Street is by no means out of the woods yet.

S&P 500 futures shed 9.5 points to 1,324.50 and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 14 points to 1,757.00. Dow industrials dropped 93 points.

Yesterday, amid a dramatic day’s trading, the Dow industrials soared 420 points, while the broader S&P 500 added 54 points

It’s Groundhog Day on Wall Street: The Fed has cut interest rates for the fifth time since last September.

This time, the Fed cut rates by three-quarters of a percentage, a smaller reduction than many investors expected.

The Fed funds rate is now at 2.25%, three percentage points lower than its mid-September level.