Aussie Dollar Rises to the Top of the G10 League Table in Wake of RBA Rate Cut

Xe Corporate APAC

2 luglio 2019 — 3 min read

The AUDUSD opens at 0.6989 (mid-rate) and the NZDUSD opens at 0.6668 (mid-rate) this morning.

The AUD is the best performing of the G10 currencies and is marginally higher against the majority of its trading partners after the RBA cut the OCR by 25 basis points to a new record low of 1.0%.

In the accompanying statement Gov Lowe said that the bank will now wait "monitor developments in the labour market closely and adjust monetary policy if needed", with the word’s “if needed” leaving investors with the impression that further rate cuts may not be required. The Bank also reiterated that future changes in interest rates remain contingent upon the developments in the labour market because the they still see jobs growth as the key to reaching their inflation target.

Across the Tasman, yesterday’s disappointing business confidence number is likely to put further pressure on the RBNZ to cut New Zealand's OCR in August. The quarterly survey showed business confidence fell to its lowest level since March 2009, with a net 31% of businesses expecting a deterioration in general economic conditions over the coming months. As of this morning the market is pricing in 19 basis points of a 25 basis point cut at the August meeting.

In the only other economic data releases of note IHS Markit reported the UK construction sector contracted the most in more than a decade in June, while house price inflation slumped to a four-month low during the same month.

Later this morning, Australia’s monthly building approvals are expected to come in flat, while Australia’s trade balance is expected to increase from 4.87B to 5.52B.

Global equity markets have edged higher - Dow +0.10%, S&P 500 +0.08%, FTSE +0.82%, DAX +0.04%, CAC +0.16%, Nikkei +0.11%, Shanghai -0.03%.

Gold prices have retraced yesterday’s fall, up 1.6% trading at $1,407 an ounce. WTI Crude Oil prices are sharply lower, down 3.6% trading at $56.93 a barrel.

Upcoming Data Releases

NZ: ANZ Commodity Prices MoM - 11:00 AEST / 13:00 NZST
AU: Building Approvals MoM - Trade Balance - 11:30 AEST / 13:30 NZST

Mid-Market Rates

AUDUSD0.69890.4%NZDUSD0.6668-0.1%AUDEUR0.61870.3%NZDEUR0.5907-0.1%AUDGBP0.55440.7%NZDGBP0.52930.3%AUDJPY75.450.1%NZDJPY71.99-0.5%AUDNZD1.04720.4%NZDAUD0.9542-0.5%GBPAUD1.8038-0.6%NZDCAD0.8744-0.2% GBPNZD1.8893-0.3%
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Currency Market Influences APAC