AUD – Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is slightly weaker this morning when valued against the Greenback, currently trading at US$0.6664 at time of writing. Wednesday is the third consecutive day that the Australian dollar was down against the US dollar, despite hawkish comments from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Deputy Governor, Sarah Hunter. The Westpac Leading Index remained unchanged in September, marking the sixth consecutive month of stagnation. The Australian weekly survey of Consumer Confidence showed little movement, with the ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence index remaining steady at 83.4 this week.
Looking ahead, all eyes will be on the Australian Bureau of Statistics when they release the latest Unemployment Rate decision. The jobless rate is expected to remain steady at 4.2%. On Friday, there will be the release of the National Australia Bank (NAB) Quarterly Business Confidence survey, which is a leading indicator of economic health. Changes in their sentiment can be an early signal of future economic activity such as spending, hiring, and investment.
Key Movers
The US dollar (USD) received support, bolstered by strong jobs reports and inflation data that have reduced expectations for aggressive easing by the Federal Reserve (Fed). As a result, markets are now forecasting a total of 125 basis points in rate cuts over the next year. The US economic calendar showed no highlights on Wednesday as markets wait for Thursday’s Retail Sales figures. US stocks popped on Wednesday, rebounding toward record highs, as investors digested a barrage of earnings results highlighted by Morgan Stanley. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose nearly 350 points, or about 0.8%, to close at a record high of 43,077.70. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) gained nearly 0.3%, while the benchmark S&P 500 (GSPC) was up around 0.5% and closed just shy of its own record. Gold prices rose during the mid-North American session on Wednesday, underpinned by the drop in US Treasury yields and the shrug off recent US dollar strength. Expectations that major central banks would cut rates amid soft inflation readings weighed on bond yields and boosted the non-yielding metal. At the time of writing, the XAUUSD trades at US$2,674, up by 0.46%.
Expected Ranges
AUD/USD: 0.6550 – 0.6750 ▼
AUD/EUR: 0.6050 – 0.6250 ▼
GBP/AUD: 1.9400 – 1.9600 ▲
AUD/NZD: 1.0900 – 1.1100 ▲
AUD/CAD: 0.9050 – 0.9250 ▼