Investing.com - The Aussie gained further in Asia on Tuesday as current account data showed a narrower than expected deficit and the market looks ahead to the latest central bank monetary policy review with most analysts expecting the benchmark rate to stay stable.
AUD/USD traded at 0.7622, up 0.53%, while USD/JPY changed hands at 103.72, up 0.28%.
Australia reported the current account deficit for the second quarter came in at A$15.5 billion, narrower than the deficit of A$19.8 billion seen, though wider than the previous level of A$14.9 billion.
Then later, the Reserve Bank of Australia will review its cash rate currently at a record low 1.50%.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose 0.06% to 95.80.
Overnight, the dollar trimmed losses against the other major currencies in quiet trade on Monday, although Friday’s downbeat U.S. employment report crushed expectations for a U.S. rate hike in the near future. According to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool, investors are pricing in a 30% chance of a rate hike at the Fed's September 20-21 meeting.
Trading volumes were thin on Monday as U.S. markets were set to remain closed for the Labor Day holiday.
The greenback remained under pressure after data on Friday showed that the U.S. economy added 151,000 jobs in August, disappointing expectations for an increase of 180,000.
The U.S. unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.9% this month, confounding expectations for a downtick to 4.8%.
The report also showed that average hourly earnings rose 0.1% in August, below expectations for a 0.2% increase.
The disappointing data dampened expectations for a near-term rate hike, as Fed officials recently indicated that the pace of interest rate increases will be data-dependent.