The Australian dollar declined today, falling for the fourth straight trading session against its most-traded peers, as today’s economic data showed that the nation’s economy is still struggling.
The Westpac Melbourne Institute Index of Consumer Sentiment declined by 0.7 percent in March. The report said:
The initial declines in December-January looked to be mainly the unwinding of the election-related sentiment boost. More recent falls though have had a very clear theme centring on a sharp loss of confidence in the economic outlook and escalating job-loss fears.
The number of home loans remained unchanged in January from December, while economists have hoped for 0.8 percent increase.
There are speculations that the Reserve Bank of Australia will cut interest rates further. The chances are considered to be relatively small, but they are still present. It is a distinct contrast to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, which may boost rates as soon as today.
AUD/USD declined from 0.8975 to 0.8958 and AUD/JPY fell from 92.46 to 92.26 as of 4:10 GMT today. The difference in the interest rate outlook also drove AUD/NZD down, pushing the currency pair from 1.0594 to 1.0578, near the weakest level since January 29.
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