The jobs decline has been erased
On Thursday, a surprise drop in Australian employment rattled AUD. The economy lost 46.3K jobs compared to a gain of 50K expected. The unemployment rate also rose to 5.2% from 4.7%.
That dampened enthusiasm for Australian rate hikes and the economy in general. The selling pressure on AUD continued through to today’s Asian session when it fell to 0.7277, which is the lowest in five weeks.
The tone improved considerably today and AUD is the top G10 performer. That might simply be a relief rally after 10 days of non-stop selling to start the month but it’s a notable bounce. A further rise from here would underscore a series of higher lows since late August.
The day to watch next week will be Tuesday as the RBA meeting minutes are released and we hear from Lowe.