Investing.com - The Aussie jumped in Asian trade on Monday as surveys on construction and jobs lifting sentiment with no other major regional data slated.
AUD/USD traded at 0.6942, up 0.48%, while USD/JPY changed hands at 119.28, up 0.22%.
In Australia the AIG construction index surprisingly jumped to 53.8 into expansion in August from a previous reading of 47.1 in contraction, and ANZ job ads also jumped in Australia, up 1% month-on-month for August from a 0.4% decline in July.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was quoted down 0.4% at 96.22. Markets in the U.S. and Canada are closed for Labor Day.
Last week, the dollar turned broadly lower on Friday after the latest U.S. employment report showed that the rate of jobs growth slowed in August, adding to uncertainty over whether the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates later this month.
The Labor Department reported that the U.S. economy added 173,000 jobs last month, slowing after an upwardly revised gain of 245,000 in July. It was the smallest increase in employment in five months and was below expectations for 220,000.
The unemployment rate ticked down to 5.1%, its lowest level since April 2008 from 5.3% in July, while average hourly wages rose by a stronger-than-expected 2.2%.
The jobs report failed to provide much clarity on when the U.S. central bank will decide to raise short term interest rates.
The dollar has come under pressure in recent weeks as slowing growth in China prompted investors to push back expectations for the timing of an initial rate hike by the Fed.
The single currency fell to two-week lows against the dollar on Thursday after the European Central Bank indicated that it could scale up its quantitative easing program and downgraded its forecasts for growth and inflation.
In the week ahead, investors will be looking ahead to Friday’s U.S. reports on producer prices and consumer sentiment for further indications on the strength of the economy.
Monetary policy meetings in Canada, New Zealand and the U.K. will also be in focus.
On Monday, the Swiss National Bank is to publish data on its foreign currency reserves. This data is closely scrutinized for indications of the size of the bank’s operations in currency markets.