Investing.com - The Australian dollar dropped to nearly two-week lows against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday, weiged by downbeat employment data from Australia and by ongoing concerns over Greece's debt crisis.
AUD/USD hit 0.7644 during late Asian trade, the pair's lowest since February 3; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.7663, declining 0.69%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.7623, the low of February 3 and a nearly six-year low and resistance at 0.7795, Wednesday's high.
In a report, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said the number of employed people dropped by 12,200 in January, compared to expectations for a 5,000 fall. December's figure was revised to an increase of 42,400 from a previously estimated 37,400 gain.
The report also showed that Australia's unemployment rate rose to 6.4% last month from 6.1% in December, compared to expectations for an uptick to 6.2%.
Separately, the Melbourne Institute said its inflation expectations for the next 12 months rose to 4.0% in January from 3.2% the previous month.
Meanwhile, market sentiment remained under pressure after talks between Greece and its European partners failed to reach agreement on a way to allow Athens to get a much needed funding program in place before the end of the month.
Another Eurogroup meeting in Brussels was set for next Monday.
The Aussie was higher against the New Zealand dollar, with AUD/NZD sliding 0.27% to 1.0445.
Also Thursday, data showed that the New Zealand Business Manufacturing Index fell to 50.9 last month from a reading of 57.1 in December, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 57.7.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release reports on retail sales and initial jobless claims.