Investing.com - The Australian dollar rose against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday, supported by the release of positive manufacturing activity data from China and as markets awaited the release of U.S. economic reports later in the day.
AUD/USD hit 0.7067 during late Asian trade, the pair's highest since September 23; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.7051, gaining 0.43%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.6934, Tuesday's low and resistance at 0.7095, the high of September 23.
Data earlier showed that China's manufacturing purchasing managers' index ticked up to 49.8 in September from 49.7 the previous month. Analysts had expected the index to slip to 49.6 last month.
China is Australia's biggest export partner.
Meanwhile, investors eyed upcoming reports on U.S. jobless claims and manufacturing activity due later in the day, amid growing uncertainty over whether or not the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates before the end of the year.
The greenback was boosted after payroll processing firm ADP reported on Wednesday that U.S. non-farm private employment rose by 200,000 this month, above expectations for an increase of 194,000.
The Aussie was also higher against the euro, with EUR/AUD declining 0.73% to 1.5808.