Investing.com - Australia’s dollar was in the red once again against the greenback during Wednesday’s Asian session following another concerning economic data point from down under.
In Asian trading Wednesday, AUD/USD fell 0.08% to 1.0495. The pair was likely to find support at 1.0450, the low of January 3 and resistance at 1.0528, the high of January 3.
The Aussie dollar waned after a glum retail sales report. Retail sales in Australia fell unexpectedly last month, official data showed on Wednesday. In a report, Australian Bureau of Statistics said that Australian retail sales fell to a seasonally adjusted -0.1%, from 0.0% in the preceding month. Analysts had expected Australian retail sales to rise 0.3% last month.
The retail sales data followed a report issued during Tuesday’s Asian session about a wider-than-expected trade deficit. Australia's trade deficit widened unexpectedly in November, rising to AUD2.64 billion from a deficit of AUD2.44 billion the previous month. Analysts had expected the trade deficit to narrow to AUD2.30 billion in November.
Those data points come as some analysts and major banks, including HSBC, are forecasting a tough year ahead for the Aussie dollar as the government there is likely to miss its goal of a budget surplus amid slack tax revenue from the mining and materials sectors.
Elsewhere, the number of job openings in Australia fell by a seasonally adjusted 6.9% to 166,800 during the November quarter.
Still, iron ore prices are rising and the Chinese economy is rebounding, two factors that could provide some near-term support for the Australian dollar,
Meanwhile, AUD/JPY added 0.35% to 91.77 while EUR/AUD climbed 0.02% to 1.2459. AUD/NZD dropped 0.25% to 1.2525.
In Asian trading Wednesday, AUD/USD fell 0.08% to 1.0495. The pair was likely to find support at 1.0450, the low of January 3 and resistance at 1.0528, the high of January 3.
The Aussie dollar waned after a glum retail sales report. Retail sales in Australia fell unexpectedly last month, official data showed on Wednesday. In a report, Australian Bureau of Statistics said that Australian retail sales fell to a seasonally adjusted -0.1%, from 0.0% in the preceding month. Analysts had expected Australian retail sales to rise 0.3% last month.
The retail sales data followed a report issued during Tuesday’s Asian session about a wider-than-expected trade deficit. Australia's trade deficit widened unexpectedly in November, rising to AUD2.64 billion from a deficit of AUD2.44 billion the previous month. Analysts had expected the trade deficit to narrow to AUD2.30 billion in November.
Those data points come as some analysts and major banks, including HSBC, are forecasting a tough year ahead for the Aussie dollar as the government there is likely to miss its goal of a budget surplus amid slack tax revenue from the mining and materials sectors.
Elsewhere, the number of job openings in Australia fell by a seasonally adjusted 6.9% to 166,800 during the November quarter.
Still, iron ore prices are rising and the Chinese economy is rebounding, two factors that could provide some near-term support for the Australian dollar,
Meanwhile, AUD/JPY added 0.35% to 91.77 while EUR/AUD climbed 0.02% to 1.2459. AUD/NZD dropped 0.25% to 1.2525.