Aussie Rises To New 2-year High Against Euro, Multi-week Highs Against Greenback And NZ Dollar
The Australian dollar strengthened against the currencies of the US and Europe in early Asian trading on Monday after a dismaying U.S. employment data on Friday sent the greenback down as traders expect the Federal Reserve will continue its stimulatory measures and low interest rates at least for another six months.
The U.S. Labor Department revealed that non-farm payrolls declined by 85,000 in December. Economists had generally expected a more modest decline for the month, with some predicting that December would see some job growth.
Results for November were revised higher, with statistics now showing a gain for the month of 4,000. When data was originally released last month, November was estimated to have seen a decline of 11,000 jobs.
The Aussie touched 1.5524 against the euro by 5:45 pm ET, the highest level since the tail end of October 2007. Thereafter, the pair started reversing its course and is currently quoted at 1.5556. The aussie was worth 1.5588 per euro at Friday’s close.
The Australian currency climbed to a fresh multi-week high of 0.9311 against the US dollar by 6:45 pm ET, compared to last week’s close of 0.9253. The aussie is currently trading at 0.931 against the buck and rising above the 0.933 resistance would bring the pair to its strongest level in nearly 2 months.
The Australian dollar advanced to near a 4-week high of 1.2591 against its New Zealand counterpart around 6:50 pm ET and the next upside target for the pair is likely to be seen around the 1.262 level. The aussie-kiwi pair that closed last week’s deals at 1.2563 is presently quoted at 1.258.
Hovering near Friday’s fresh 15-month high, the Australian unit advanced to 86.05 against the yen at this time and moving a few pips up may push the pair to its strongest level since September 29, 2008. The pair, which finished last week’s trading higher at 85.71, is presently quoted at 85.9.
