Australian Dollar underperforms despite positive outcomes of Trump-Xi meet
- The Australian Dollar weakens against its major peers despite multiple tailwinds.
- Positive outcomes from the Trump-Xi meeting and hawkish RBA bets are expected to strengthen the antipodean.
- Traders price out dovish Fed bets amid hot US inflation.
The Australian Dollar (AUD) trades lower against its major currency peers, is down 0.25% to near 0.7240 against the US Dollar (USD) during the European trading session on Thursday. The antipodean faces selling pressure even as comments from both United States (US) President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping indicate that trade relations between both economies will improve from hereon.
Australian Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of Australian Dollar (AUD) against listed major currencies today. Australian Dollar was the weakest against the US Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.05% | 0.08% | 0.03% | 0.10% | 0.24% | 0.07% | -0.05% | |
| EUR | -0.05% | 0.02% | -0.04% | 0.04% | 0.14% | -0.01% | -0.10% | |
| GBP | -0.08% | -0.02% | -0.06% | 0.02% | 0.14% | -0.03% | -0.09% | |
| JPY | -0.03% | 0.04% | 0.06% | 0.05% | 0.19% | 0.01% | -0.10% | |
| CAD | -0.10% | -0.04% | -0.02% | -0.05% | 0.15% | -0.05% | -0.10% | |
| AUD | -0.24% | -0.14% | -0.14% | -0.19% | -0.15% | -0.16% | -0.21% | |
| NZD | -0.07% | 0.01% | 0.03% | -0.01% | 0.05% | 0.16% | -0.07% | |
| CHF | 0.05% | 0.10% | 0.09% | 0.10% | 0.10% | 0.21% | 0.07% |
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).
Improving US-China trade relations is a favorable scenario for the Australian Dollar, given that the Australian economy relies heavily on its exports to Beijing.
Chinese leader Xi said at the state banquet in Beijing that both the US and China should become partners and not rivals. Xi added, “Rejuvenation of China and 'Make America Great Again' can go hand in hand.”
Meanwhile, US President Trump stated at the state banquet that the visit to China is “historic”, and has invited Chinese leader Xi to White House on September 24.
On the domestic front, swaps suggest the possibility of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) delivering an interest rate hike in August is about 80%, Reuters reports. This would be the fourth interest rate hike by the RBA this year. The RBA has hiked its Official Cash Rate (OCR) in every policy meeting so far this year.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar trades firmly due to increased expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will not cut interest rates this year. Dovish Fed bets have squeezed significantly due to accelerating inflationary pressures in the wake of higher energy prices.
RBA FAQs
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) sets interest rates and manages monetary policy for Australia. Decisions are made by a board of governors at 11 meetings a year and ad hoc emergency meetings as required. The RBA’s primary mandate is to maintain price stability, which means an inflation rate of 2-3%, but also “..to contribute to the stability of the currency, full employment, and the economic prosperity and welfare of the Australian people.” Its main tool for achieving this is by raising or lowering interest rates. Relatively high interest rates will strengthen the Australian Dollar (AUD) and vice versa. Other RBA tools include quantitative easing and tightening.
While inflation had always traditionally been thought of as a negative factor for currencies since it lowers the value of money in general, the opposite has actually been the case in modern times with the relaxation of cross-border capital controls. Moderately higher inflation now tends to lead central banks to put up their interest rates, which in turn has the effect of attracting more capital inflows from global investors seeking a lucrative place to keep their money. This increases demand for the local currency, which in the case of Australia is the Aussie Dollar.
Macroeconomic data gauges the health of an economy and can have an impact on the value of its currency. Investors prefer to invest their capital in economies that are safe and growing rather than precarious and shrinking. Greater capital inflows increase the aggregate demand and value of the domestic currency. Classic indicators, such as GDP, Manufacturing and Services PMIs, employment, and consumer sentiment surveys can influence AUD. A strong economy may encourage the Reserve Bank of Australia to put up interest rates, also supporting AUD.
Quantitative Easing (QE) is a tool used in extreme situations when lowering interest rates is not enough to restore the flow of credit in the economy. QE is the process by which the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) prints Australian Dollars (AUD) for the purpose of buying assets – usually government or corporate bonds – from financial institutions, thereby providing them with much-needed liquidity. QE usually results in a weaker AUD.
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse of QE. It is undertaken after QE when an economic recovery is underway and inflation starts rising. Whilst in QE the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) purchases government and corporate bonds from financial institutions to provide them with liquidity, in QT the RBA stops buying more assets, and stops reinvesting the principal maturing on the bonds it already holds. It would be positive (or bullish) for the Australian Dollar.
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