Investing.com - The Australian dollar rose against its U.S. counterpart on Tuesday, after the Reserve Bank of Australia left interest rates unchanged and reiterated its intention to keep borrowing costs at record lows for an extended period of time.
AUD/USD hit 0.8543 during late Asian trade, the pair's highest since November 28; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.8517, gaining 0.28%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.8416, Monday's low and a four-year low and resistance at 0.8620, the high of November 27.
In a widely expected move, the RBA left its benchmark interest rate at a record-low 2.50%.
Commenting on the decision, RBA Governor Glenn Stevens said "the most prudent course is likely to be a period of stability in interest rates."
Separately, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that building approvals rose 11.4% in October, exceeding expectations for an increase of 5.2%. The change in building approvals for September was revised to a 11.2% drop from a previously estimated 11.0% decline.
Data also showed that Australia's current account deficit narrowed to A$12.5 billion in the third quarter from A$13.9 billion in the second quarter, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated deficit of A$13.7 billion.
Analysts had expected the current account deficit to narrow to A$13.5 billion.
Meanwhile, the greenback remained mildly supported after the U.S. Institute for Supply Management said its index of purchasing managers fell to 58.7 last month from a reading of 59.0 in October. Analysts had expected the manufacturing PMI to decline to 57.9 in November.
The Aussie was higher against the euro, with EUR/AUD retreating 0.36% to 1.4630.