Investing.com - The Australian dollar rose against the greenback on Thursday on news that unemployment data out of Australia came in stronger than expected.
In Asian trading on Thursday, AUD/USD hit 1.0379, up 0.78%, up from a session low of 1.0298 and off from a high of 1.0381.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.0227, Wednesday’s low, and resistance at 1.0466, the high of April 3.
Australian employment data served as the pair's top weather vane.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that the Australian employment change rose to a seasonally adjusted 44,000 in March from a decline of 15,400 in the preceding month.
Analysts had expected the Australian employment change to rise 6,000 last month.
The headline unemployment rate fell to 5.2% from 5.3%.
Meanwhile, talk in the U.S. the Federal Reserve won't rule out stimulating the economy via easing measures sent the Australian dollar higher.
Under quantitative easing, which the Fed has used twice since the downturn, monetary authorities pump liquidity into the economy via buying assets like bonds from banks.
"I consider a highly accommodative policy stance to be appropriate in present circumstances. But considerable uncertainty surrounds the outlook, and I remain prepared to adjust my policy views in response to incoming information," Federal Reserve Vice Chair Janet Yellen said in prepared remarks.
"In particular, further easing actions could be warranted if the recovery proceeds at a slower-than-expected pace, while a significant acceleration in the pace of recovery could call for an earlier beginning to the process of policy firming than the FOMC currently anticipates," referring to the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the body that votes on monetary policy.
The Australian dollar was up against the euro and up against the yen, with EUR/AUD trading down 0.53% at 1.2660 and AUD/JPY up 0.78% at 83.93.
Later Thursday, U.S. initial jobless claims and trade balance figures will be released.
In Asian trading on Thursday, AUD/USD hit 1.0379, up 0.78%, up from a session low of 1.0298 and off from a high of 1.0381.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.0227, Wednesday’s low, and resistance at 1.0466, the high of April 3.
Australian employment data served as the pair's top weather vane.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that the Australian employment change rose to a seasonally adjusted 44,000 in March from a decline of 15,400 in the preceding month.
Analysts had expected the Australian employment change to rise 6,000 last month.
The headline unemployment rate fell to 5.2% from 5.3%.
Meanwhile, talk in the U.S. the Federal Reserve won't rule out stimulating the economy via easing measures sent the Australian dollar higher.
Under quantitative easing, which the Fed has used twice since the downturn, monetary authorities pump liquidity into the economy via buying assets like bonds from banks.
"I consider a highly accommodative policy stance to be appropriate in present circumstances. But considerable uncertainty surrounds the outlook, and I remain prepared to adjust my policy views in response to incoming information," Federal Reserve Vice Chair Janet Yellen said in prepared remarks.
"In particular, further easing actions could be warranted if the recovery proceeds at a slower-than-expected pace, while a significant acceleration in the pace of recovery could call for an earlier beginning to the process of policy firming than the FOMC currently anticipates," referring to the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the body that votes on monetary policy.
The Australian dollar was up against the euro and up against the yen, with EUR/AUD trading down 0.53% at 1.2660 and AUD/JPY up 0.78% at 83.93.
Later Thursday, U.S. initial jobless claims and trade balance figures will be released.