Asian Session – Aussie gains as RBA leaves interest rate unchanged
April 2, 2013 7:35 am
The Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3 percent to match a half-century low. The central bank said that recent economic data suggest that there is growth in household spending. The RBA statement indicates the central bank is becoming more comfortable with keeping the rates where they are.
The Australian dollar reacted positively to the RBA announcement today and gained against the US dollar. AUDUSD opened in Asia at $1.0421 and rose to a high of $1.0478.
Yen remained strong in Asia, rising to a one-month high against the dollar, which was broadly weaker after Monday’s disappointing ISM data. USDJPY fell to a low of 92.55 yen. Yen also gains versus the euro, as EURJPY fell to 119.14 yen.
Gains in the yen are expected to be limited ahead of the Bank of Japan policy meeting on Thursday. The central bank is widely expected to increase its bond buying under new Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, who has pledged to adopt more aggressive monetary easing measure to stimulate the economy.
The euro extended higher in the Asian session , gaining 0.1 percent to $1.2876, moving away from a four-month low of $1.2750 touched last week. The euro was given an extra lift due to a weak dollar, which was hurt on Monday by softer ISM manufacturing data.
Investors will remain cautious on the dollar ahead of new economic data that could flag slowing US economic momentum. Focus will turn to the private ADP employment report and the latest weekly US jobless claims figures. These precede the key monthly nonfarm payrolls report on Friday.
Meanwhile in the upcoming European session, we have a series of economic data on Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), which will be closely watched.
The Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3 percent to match a half-century low. The central bank said that recent economic data suggest that there is growth in household spending. The RBA statement indicates the central bank is becoming more comfortable with keeping the rates where they are.
The Australian dollar reacted positively to the RBA announcement today and gained against the US dollar. AUDUSD opened in Asia at $1.0421 and rose to a high of $1.0478.
Yen remained strong in Asia, rising to a one-month high against the dollar, which was broadly weaker after Monday’s disappointing ISM data. USDJPY fell to a low of 92.55 yen. Yen also gains versus the euro, as EURJPY fell to 119.14 yen.
Gains in the yen are expected to be limited ahead of the Bank of Japan policy meeting on Thursday. The central bank is widely expected to increase its bond buying under new Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, who has pledged to adopt more aggressive monetary easing measure to stimulate the economy.
The euro extended higher in the Asian session , gaining 0.1 percent to $1.2876, moving away from a four-month low of $1.2750 touched last week. The euro was given an extra lift due to a weak dollar, which was hurt on Monday by softer ISM manufacturing data.
Investors will remain cautious on the dollar ahead of new economic data that could flag slowing US economic momentum. Focus will turn to the private ADP employment report and the latest weekly US jobless claims figures. These precede the key monthly nonfarm payrolls report on Friday.
Meanwhile in the upcoming European session, we have a series of economic data on Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), which will be closely watched.
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