Australian dollar coin
A one Australian dollar coin is seen in this picture illustration taken in Sydney, Australia, July 29, 2015. Reuters/David Gray

Bell FX Currency Outlook: The AUD is trading slightly higher this morning, opening around the USD0.7450 level.

Australia: Yesterday the currency had a slight pullback after Chinese trade numbers disappointed the market. Both Chinese exports and imports printed below expectations at -25.4%yoy and -13.8yoy respectively. Japan’s trade figures also showed a big drop in exports and this weighed on sentiment in the market. However later in the session the AUD managed to make up some lost ground, as losses were pared late in the offshore session. On the day we have Westpac’s consumer confidence reading for March and then Housing Finance approvals for January. The market is expecting an improvement in sentiment while we might see a slight decline in finance approvals.

Majors: The USD recouped some losses overnight as investors looked ahead to this week’s European Central Bank’s policy meeting. The market is expecting that they will cut rates further which would put downward pressure on the EUR. The EUR was down a little over 0.1% against the USD in afternoon trade after trading higher the night before. US Stocks fell, ending a five day rally while investors turned to more “safe” assets. The Dow declined 109.85 points, the S&P 500 fell 1.1% and the Nasdaq dropped 1.3%. In offshore markets this morning we get Japan’s machine orders for February and tonight we have the UK’s industrial production for January followed by US wholesale inventories January.

Economic Calendar 09 MAR

  • NZ RBNZ Official Cash Rate
  • EC Main Refi/Deposit Rate
  • AU Consumer Inflation Expectations
  • US Initial Jobless Claims

Bell Fx

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