Investing.com - The Aussie held weaker on Wednesday as prics data out of China pointed to subdued economic pressures.
China said consumer prices gained 1.6% in September, a slower pace than the 1.8% gain seen, while producer prices fell at the 5.9% pace expected
AUD/USD traded at 0.7218, down 0.37%, with the currency's fortunes closely linked to demand for commodities from China while USD/JPY changed hands at 119.62, down 0.10%, after corprorate goods index data.
In early Asia, the Westpac consumer sentiment survey rose 4.2% to 97.8, compared to an expected 3.0% gain, as a change in government leadership aided upbeat views.
In Japan, the corporate goods prices index fell 3.9%, matching expectations.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell 0.03% to 94.78.
Overnight, the dollar was almost unchanged near one-month lows against the other major currencies in quiet trade on Tuesday, as declining expectations for a U.S. rate hike this year continued to dampen demand for the greenback.
The euro's gains were held in check however, as the ZEW Centre for Economic Research said its index of German economic sentiment fell to a one-year low of 1.9 this month from 12.1 in September, well below economist’s forecasts for a reading of 6.0.
It was the sixth consecutive monthly decline.
A separate index, measuring current conditions dropped to 55.2 from 67.5 points in September, compared to expectations for a drop to 64.7.
Meanwhile, the greenback remained under pressure after the minutes from the Federal Reserve's September policy meeting, published last week, reinforced expectations that U.S. interest rates will remain on hold until well into 2016.