
The AUD/USD pair exhibits indecisiveness around 0.6300 during North American trading hours on Wednesday. The Aussie pair struggles for direction after the release of the Australian Monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for February, which showed that inflation has cooled down.
The inflation data rose at a slower pace of 2.4% compared to estimates and January's reading of 2.5%. Technically, soft inflation data should have boosted market expectations that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) could cut interest rates again in the April meeting. However, traders would also discount the expansionary fiscal budget unveiled by Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Tuesday, which is expected to be inflationary for the Australian economy.
The major highlight of the budget was a progressive reduction in personal taxes for individuals' earnings between $18,201 and $45,000 for the next three years. The administration announced an additional $1.8 billion in energy bill relief, supporting households against high inflation.
In the February meeting, the RBA reduced its Official Cash rate (OCR) by 25 basis points (bps) to 4.10%, and RBA Governor Michele Bullock guided a ‘gradual and cautious' monetary policy easing in the February policy meeting.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar (USD) ticks higher but trades in a limited range amid uncertainty over how tariffs by United States (US) President Donald Trump will shape the domestic outlook. Trump is poised to unveil reciprocal tariffs on April 2. However, he has indicated that a few nations could get tariff breaks.
On the economic data front, investors await the US Personal Consumption Expenditure Price Index (PCE) data for February, which will be released on Friday. Economists expect the US core PCE inflation, which is the Federal Reserve's (Fed) preferred inflation gauge, to have grown at a faster pace of 2.7% year-on-year, compared to the 2.6% increase seen in January.
Source: Fxstreet
The Australian dollar (AUD) held strong at the start of the week after strong Australian inflation data, while the US dollar weakened as market sentiment grew cautious due to the US-Greenland dispute....
The Australian Dollar is the best performer among major currencies in an otherwise calm start tobe the year. The Aussie appreciates nearly 0.5% against the US Dollar in the daily chart, so far, buoyed...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) continued to strengthen against the US Dollar (USD) on Wednesday, posting gains for the third consecutive day. The AUD's strength was driven by the release of the Reserve B...
The AUD/USD currency pair is currently in a bullish consolidation phase, a brief pause in its uptrend, and is hovering around the 0.6600 level during the Asian session on Friday (December 5th). This l...
The Australian Dollar (AUD) rose and reached a three-week high against the US Dollar (USD) during Wednesday's Asian session. This rise occurred despite less-than-satisfactory Australian economic data....
Oil prices stabilized on Thursday (February 12th), as the market reassigned a risk premium to US-Iran tensions despite US inventory data showing swelling domestic supplies. This movement confirms one thing: geopolitical headlines are still more...
Gold prices weakened slightly on Thursday (February 12th), as more solid US employment data reduced market confidence in an imminent Federal Reserve interest rate cut. The strong employment data prompted market participants to shift expectations of...
The Hang Seng Index reversed its downward trend in Hong Kong on Thursday (February 12th), weakening by around 0.9% to around 27,000 after a strong session earlier. This decline halted the momentum of the short term rally, as investors began to...