Investing.com - The Australian dollar was steady against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday, after a report showed that inflation expectations in Australia ticked lower last month and as investors eyed the release of U.S. jobless claims data later in the day.
AUD/USD hit 0.9288 during late Asian trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.9230, inching down 0.04%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.9265, Wednesday's low and resistance at 0.9320, Wednesday's high.
In a report, the Melbourne Institute said that inflation expectations for the next year in Australia slipped to 3.1% in July, from 3.8% in June.
Meanwhile, sentiment on the greenback remained vulnerable after the Commerce Department reported on Wednesday that U.S. retail sales were flat last month, disappointing expectations for a 0.2% increase.
Core retail sales, which exclude auto sales, rose just 0.1% in July, compared to expectations for a 0.4% gain.
The Aussie was lower against the New Zealand dollar, with AUD/NZD shedding 0.24% to 1.0974.
Also Thursday, official data showed that retail sales in New Zealand rose 1.2% in the last quarter, beating expectations for an increase of 1.0%. Retail sales for the first quarter were revised to a 0.8% gain from a previously estimated 0.7% rise.
Core retail sales, which exclude automobiles and gas stations, advanced 1.2% in the second quarter, compared to expectations for a 1.1% rise. In the three months to April, core retail sales increased 1.0%, up from a previously estimated 0.8% gain.
A separate report showed that the New Zealand Business Manufacturing Index ticked down to 53.0 last month, from a reading of 53.4 in June, whose figure was revised up from a previously estimated 53.3.