SYDNEY: The Australian dollar moved higher on Monday, driven by the earlier momentum of weaker-than-expected US job numbers, strong Chinese exports and steady house financing data at home.
In late local trade the Aussie was fetching US86.75¢, compared with US85.52¢ at the same time on Friday. The local unit was boosted by a greenback sell-off in international markets on Friday after US non-farm payrolls came in at 214,000, against expectations of 235,000.
Despite this, Australian banks continue to revise down their mid- to long-range forecasts for the Aussie’s value against the US dollar. National Australia Bank on Monday lowered its outlook for the currency pair, seeing the local unit at US85¢ by March next year and US78¢ in 2016, compared with an earlier forecast of US80¢.
The bank cites weak commodity prices and the strength of the US economic recovery as the principal drivers of the Aussie’s gradual decline. The surprise expansion of the Bank of Japan’s asset-buying – or quantitative easing – program has provided additional fuel to the greenback rally, the bank said.
