AUD Furthers Recent Gains
AUD
The Aussie dollar has found solid gains across the board despite weak commodity performance, with Gold and Silver up 0.2% and 0.1% respectively, while Iron Ore down -1.0% and Copper down -0.7%. Asian equities shared the same fate, with the ASX down -0.8% and the Shanghai Comp down -0.3%. Quiet on the data front yesterday ahead of the domestic Retail Sales m/m print at 11:30am today. Sales are expected to uptick by +0.1% after a +0.9% gain in the previous month, with the RBA recently pushing a narrative of local, demand-driven price pressures. RBA Gov Bullock will speak a little later in Hong Kong, which may shed light on the economic outlook of the RBA and if there are any further rate hikes on the cards.
USD
The AUDUSD continued higher yesterday, grinding through the 0.66 barrier late last night, to a 3-month high before dropping off a tad to open this morning at 0.6607. Wall St was soft into the close, with Down Jones down -0.2%, S&P 500 down -0.1 and the NASDAQ flat. Last night, New Home Sales came in lower than expected at 679k, with expectations at 724k from a previous reading at 719k. Tonight, we have CB Consumer Confidence being released, expected to decline from 102.6 to 101, also Richmond Manufacturing Index looking to decline from 3 to 1.
EUR
AUDEUR hit 0.5998 lows in yesterday's mid-afternoon before rallying to 20-day highs of 0.6037, then falling off slightly to open at 0.6026. European equities closed the start of the week in the red, with both the DAX and CAC down 0.4%. Last night, we had ECB President Lagarde speak, indicating the ECB was determined to bring inflation back to target though inflationary pressures were weakening despite uncertainty around the mid-term outlook. She also noted that the EU economy was likely to remain weak with weaker activity in recent quarters. Tonight, we have German GfK Consumer Climate, expected to remain mostly unchanged, at -28.2 from a -28.1.
GBP
AUDGBP had a soft open yesterday, falling to the 0.5210 barrier before a light rally into this morning’s open of 0.5231. UK equities were also soft at the start of the week, with the FTSE closing down -0.4%. To the news, weak CBI Realised Sales exceeded expectations, printing at -11, expected at -30 from a previous -36. It will be a light day for meaningful data, with BRC Shop Price Index y/y, previously coming in at 5.2%.
NZD
The AUDNZD finds small gains at the start of the week, with small gain in the morning where it stayed for the rest of the day, opening at 1.0833. There is no news out of NZ yesterday or today; with Wednesday being the next data release being the Official Cash Rate, looking to come in unchanged at 5.50%.