AUD/USD: Aussie Pushes Above 94 Following Fed Statement

 | Jun 20, 2014 01:37AM ET

The Australian Dollar continues to post gains and has moved above the 0.94 level on Thursday. On the release front, Unemployment Claims dipped last week, beating the estimate. We'll get a look at the Philly Fed Manufacturing Index later in the day, with the markets expecting a softer reading in May. The sole Australian release on Thursday is the RBA Bulletin, a minor event.

The Federal Reserve continued to trim its QE program, reducing the scheme by $10 billion, to $35 billion/month. If all goes as planned, the Fed could wind up QE in the fall. The Fed also hinted that interest rates will continue to stay low for the foreseeable future, which likely means that we won't see any rate hikes before the first quarter of 2015. With regard to economic activity, the Fed noted that the recovery is continuing, but it reduced its forecast of economic growth to 2.1-2.3%, down from an earlier forecast of around 2.9 percent. The bottom line? There were no dramatic items in the Fed statement, with one analyst describing current Fed policy as "steady as she goes".

The news out of the US was mixed on Tuesday. Building Permits dropped to 0.99M, well below the estimate of 1.07M. On the inflation front, CPI moved up modestly, posting a gain of 0.3%. This was the strongest gain we've seen since January 2013. CPI followed suit, climbing to an eleven-month high. The index rose to 0.4%, beating the estimate of 0.2%. The Fed policy statement took note of the weak inflation levels, which are nowhere near the Fed's target of 2%.

Australian Leading Indexes were listless in May, and point to a slowdown in the economy. The MI Leading Index managed a paltry gain of 0.1%, its highest level in 2014. The CB Leading Index posted a decline of 0.1%, its worst showing since last September. Australia's key export sector is being squeezed by falling commodity prices while the high Australian dollar is making Australian goods less competitive on global markets. At the same time, consumer confidence and spending remains at very low levels. If key economic data points downward, the high-flying Aussie could lose ground.