Investing.com - The Australian dollar recovered smartly on Thursday as the manufacturing outlook for top export destination China brightened in May.
China's HSBC May flash manufacturing PMI rose to 49.7, well above expectations of matching the April reading of 48.1.
"The HSBC Flash China Manufacturing PMI rebounded sharply to 49.7 in May, up from 48.1 in April," said HSBC chief China economist Qu Hongbin.
"The improvement was broad-based with both new orders and new export orders back in expansionary territory. Disinflationary pressures also eased over the month and output prices increased for the first time since November 2013. However, the employment index fell further to 47.3, which implies that this month's uptick in sentiment has not yet filtered through to the labour market. Some tentative signs of stabilization are emerging, partly as a result of the recent mini-stimulus measures and lower borrowing costs. But downside risks to growth remain, particularly as the property market continues to cool. We think more policy easing is needed to put a floor under growth in the coming months."
AUD/USD traded at 0.9255, up 0.04%, after the data and reversing an earlier decline, while USD/JPY traded at 101.50, up 0.11%.
Australia's May MI inflation expectations showed an acceleration to 2.9% for the annual mean view, a surge from April's 2.4% that was in the lower half of the RBA's band of 2% to 3%.
The Bank of Japan's May economic report is due at 1400 (0500 GMT).
Overnight, the dollar trimmed gained against most major currencies though remained largely higher after the minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting revealed monetary authorities are preparing to normalize policy though rate hikes aren't on any timetable.
The Federal Reserve Board of Governors agreed at their April policy meeting that the time has come to discuss ways to wrap up monetary stimulus programs, though rate hikes aren't on the drawing board yet, as no inflationary risks have become evident due to ultra-loose policies.
The Fed is currently purchasing $45 billion in Treasury and mortgage debt a month to spur recovery, a monetary policy tool known as quantitative easing that suppresses long-term interest rates, weakening the dollar while boosting stock prices on hopes investing and hiring will follow suit.
"Participants generally agreed that starting to consider the options for normalization at this meeting was prudent, as it would help the Committee to make decisions about approaches to policy normalization and to communicate its plans to the public well before the first steps in normalizing policy become appropriate," the minutes from the Fed's April 29-30 meeting read.
"Early communication, in turn, would enhance the clarity and credibility of monetary policy and help promote the achievement of the Committee's statutory objectives."
The US Dollar Index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, rose 0.04% at 80.15.
On Thursday, the U.S. is to release its weekly report on initial jobless claims and private sector data on existing home sales.