Among major economies and world currencies, the Australian Dollar was the obvious big mover after an unexpectedly disappointing inflation reading pushed the Aussie lower. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that Q4 CPI rose to 1.5% (year-over-year) against expectations of a rise to 1.6% from 1.3%. That news flamed investors’ hopes that the Reserve Bank of Australia might consider a rate cut in an effort to generate inflation. The RBA, however, doesn’t appear too concerned about the numbers, says one currency strategist, but are likely to now be more closely monitoring the non-mining sector which was the most problematic.
As reported at 10:28 am (GMT) in London, the AUD/USD was trading at $0.7542, down 0.54%, recovering slightly from the earlier 0.80% loss which occurred shortly after the news release. The pair’s trading range for the session is $0.7531 for the low end at $0.7598 at the high end.
Trump and Brexit Concerns Grow
The US Dollar retreated on growing concerns over US President Trump’s perceived protectionist policies and his hints that the Dollar is already too strong. The USD/JPY was down 0.55% to trade at 0.7542 Yen. Across the pond, the Pound Sterling was earlier under renewed Brexit worries but has since recovered and is now trading against the Dollar at $1.2571, up 0.34%.
