Home Daily Commentaries Aussie dollar trades below 0.72 U.S. cents

Aussie dollar trades below 0.72 U.S. cents

Daily Currency Update

The Australian dollar was among the worst performers yesterday falling against the Greenback to a fresh one-week low of 0.7192. The AUD/USD pair was sharply down for a second consecutive day, AUD/USD pair dropping below the psychological of 0.7200 level having fallen from a high of 0.7298 on the day. From a technical perspective, the AUD/USD pair is currently trading at 0.7177. We continue to expect support to hold on moves approaching 0.7125 while now any upward push will likely meet resistance around 0.7220.

Looking ahead today we will see the release of the Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes which provide a detailed record of the RBA Reserve Bank Board's most recent meeting, providing in-depth insights into the economic conditions that influenced their decision on where to set interest rates. We will also see the release of House Price Index (HPI) a leading indicator of the housing industry's health because rising house prices attract investors and spur industry activity. Today we will also China will release Retail Sales figures and Industrial Production for the month of February. Later this week on Thursday all eyes will be on Australian Unemployment Rate figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics which forecast a fall in unemployment to 4.1% whilst adding roughly 40.3K new jobs.

Key Movers

Overnight the US dollar index (DXY), which measures the greenback against six major peers, was down 0.25% at 98.883 but was correcting in the North American market as risk appetite dies dwindles on Wall Street in choppy trade. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was lower by 0.15% and the S&P 500 was down 0.72%. The US Federal Reserve is widely expected to raise interest rates at its meeting ending on Wednesday, with investors pricing in a 99% chance of a 25 basis point hike. The last commentary from the Fed Chairman Jerome Powell flagged multiple rate hikes this year considering surging inflation. These expectations for progressive Fed rate hikes this year suggest it is set to remain the greenback well supported going forward.

Expected Ranges

  • AUD/USD: 0.7050 - 0.7250 ▼
  • AUD/EUR: 0.6450 - 0.6650 ▼
  • GBP/AUD: 1.7950 - 1.8150 ▲
  • AUD/NZD: 1.0550 - 1.0750 ▲
  • AUD/CAD: 0.9100 - 0.9300 ▼