The Australian Dollar (AUD) weakens on Thursday, trading at 0.6550 against the US Dollar (USD), down 0.50% at the time of writing. The Aussie gives up its early gains as the Greenback recovers, supported by a rebound in the US Dollar Index (DXY), which hovers near a two-month high around 99.50.
The corrective move in the US Dollar following the September Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) Minutes appears to have faded. Despite signals suggesting further rate cuts later this year, the Greenback remains underpinned by renewed risk aversion and profit-taking across equity markets.
According to Bloomberg, several funds in Europe and Asia continue to bet on sustained US Dollar strength through year-end, increasing bearish option positions on the Euro and Japanese Yen. These trades reflect a defensive positioning amid recent weakness in US Equities.
In Australia, attention turns to Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Michele Bullock, who is scheduled to speak at 22:00 GMT. Her remarks could provide fresh clues about the monetary policy outlook. The RBA recently kept its cash rate unchanged at 3.60%, while noting that disinflation remains incomplete.
Data from the University of Melbourne showed that one-year Consumer Inflation Expectations rose to 4.8% in October from 4.7% in September, suggesting that price pressures persist. This could encourage the RBA to maintain a cautious or even slightly hawkish tone at its next meeting.
Against this backdrop, the AUD/USD pair remains fragile in the short term, with direction likely to depend on Governor Bullock’s comments and the broader trend of the US Dollar.
The table below shows the percentage change of Australian Dollar (AUD) against listed major currencies today. Australian Dollar was the strongest against the New Zealand Dollar.
USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
USD | 0.62% | 0.79% | 0.29% | 0.48% | 0.41% | 0.79% | 0.74% | |
EUR | -0.62% | 0.18% | -0.30% | -0.16% | -0.06% | 0.20% | 0.00% | |
GBP | -0.79% | -0.18% | -0.51% | -0.31% | -0.25% | 0.06% | -0.14% | |
JPY | -0.29% | 0.30% | 0.51% | 0.11% | 0.22% | 0.47% | 0.39% | |
CAD | -0.48% | 0.16% | 0.31% | -0.11% | 0.01% | 0.33% | 0.12% | |
AUD | -0.41% | 0.06% | 0.25% | -0.22% | -0.01% | 0.34% | 0.04% | |
NZD | -0.79% | -0.20% | -0.06% | -0.47% | -0.33% | -0.34% | -0.20% | |
CHF | -0.74% | -0.01% | 0.14% | -0.39% | -0.12% | -0.04% | 0.20% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Australian Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent AUD (base)/USD (quote).