Investing.com - The Australian dollar fell against its U.S. cousin on Wednesday thanks to waning consumer confidence figures at home coupled with a global risk-off trading session that saw a surge in demand for the greenback versus higher-yielding currencies amid Greek concerns.
In Asian trading on Wednesday, AUD/USD hit 0.9921, down 0.15%, up from a session low of 0.9917 and off from a high of 0.9949.
The pair was likely to test support at 0.9912, the low on Dec. 20, and resistance at 1.0034, the high on May 14.
Talks among Greek political parties aimed at forming a coalition government have ended in collapse, fueling fears the country will hold a new round of elections that would boost those who favor abandoning painful austerity measures.
Greece has agreed to politically unpopular belt-tightening measures such as tax hikes, spending cuts and public-sector layoffs in exchange for bailout money, measures a growing number of Greeks say aren't helping the country and aren't worth the rescue funding.
A Greek exit from the currency zone could rattle markets worldwide, and investors stocked up on dollars Wednesday at the expense of the Australian currency.
Closer to home, the Westpac consumer confidence index rose by 0.8%, and while an improvement, confidence was still down from a year ago.
The Australian dollar was down against the euro and up against the yen, with EUR/AUD up 0.07% at 1.2821 and AUD/JPY up 0.14% at 79.79.
Later Wednesday, the U.S. will release official data on building permits and housing starts, followed by Federal Reserve data on the capacity utilization rate and industrial production.
Crude inventory data will publish as well the minutes of the Fed’s latest policy meeting.
Japanese gross domestic product growth figures are due out as well, which could move the pair.
Meanwhile the Melbourne Institute will release its inflation expectations index, which will shed light on expectations for changing consumer prices over the next 12 months.
In Asian trading on Wednesday, AUD/USD hit 0.9921, down 0.15%, up from a session low of 0.9917 and off from a high of 0.9949.
The pair was likely to test support at 0.9912, the low on Dec. 20, and resistance at 1.0034, the high on May 14.
Talks among Greek political parties aimed at forming a coalition government have ended in collapse, fueling fears the country will hold a new round of elections that would boost those who favor abandoning painful austerity measures.
Greece has agreed to politically unpopular belt-tightening measures such as tax hikes, spending cuts and public-sector layoffs in exchange for bailout money, measures a growing number of Greeks say aren't helping the country and aren't worth the rescue funding.
A Greek exit from the currency zone could rattle markets worldwide, and investors stocked up on dollars Wednesday at the expense of the Australian currency.
Closer to home, the Westpac consumer confidence index rose by 0.8%, and while an improvement, confidence was still down from a year ago.
The Australian dollar was down against the euro and up against the yen, with EUR/AUD up 0.07% at 1.2821 and AUD/JPY up 0.14% at 79.79.
Later Wednesday, the U.S. will release official data on building permits and housing starts, followed by Federal Reserve data on the capacity utilization rate and industrial production.
Crude inventory data will publish as well the minutes of the Fed’s latest policy meeting.
Japanese gross domestic product growth figures are due out as well, which could move the pair.
Meanwhile the Melbourne Institute will release its inflation expectations index, which will shed light on expectations for changing consumer prices over the next 12 months.