The Australian dollar was weak today due to uncertainty surrounding the US-China trade deal as well as the slower-than-expected economic growth in Australia. Losses were limited, though, thanks to the positive report from China, Australia’s biggest trading partner.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that gross domestic product rose by 0.4% in the September quarter from the previous three months. It was a slightly worse reading than an increase of 0.5% predicted by analysts. On a positive note, the increase in the June quarter got a positive revision from 0.5% to 0.6%. Year-on-year, the economy grew 1.7% last quarter.
The Australian Industry Group Australian Performance of Services Index fell by 1.5 points to 53.7 in November. A reading above 50.0 indicates expansion of the sector. It was the fourth month of positive but moderate conditions in the services industries.
Meanwhile, the Caixin China Services PMI climbed from 51.1 in October to 53.5 in November, while analysts had predicted the index to stay barely changed.
Going forward, the Australian dollar will be affected by tomorrow’s releases of retail sales and trade balance data as well as news about developments in the US-China trade talks.
AUD/USD fell from 0.6846 to 0.6835 as of 12:41 GMT today, and its daily low was at 0.6813. EUR/AUD was up from 1.6181 to 1.6204, reaching the high of 1.6261 intraday. GBP/AUD surged from 1.8968 to 1.9134.
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