MarketPulse | Jul 24, 2014 11:54AM ET
AUD/USD has posted slight losses on Thursday, as the pair trades in the low-0.94 range early in the North American session. Looking at today's releases, US Unemployment Claims sparkled, dropping to their lowest level in over eight years. However, New Home Sales dropped sharply in June, well shy of the forecast. There are no Australian releases on Thursday.
Unemployment Claims tumbled last week, as the key indicator fell to 298 thousand, its lowest level since February 2008. This surprised the markets, which had expected a reading of 301 thousand. The strong release continues a string of solid employment data, and the dollar could get a boost from the good news. As well, good news on the employment front is bound to increase speculation about a rate increase by the Federal Reserve.
US housing data was dismal on Thursday, as New Home Sales slumped to a three-month low. The key indicator fell to 406 thousand, compared to 504 thousand in the previous release. The markets were way off in their forecast, with an estimate of 485 thousand. There was much better news earlier in the week, as Existing Home Sales jumped to 5.04 million, surpassing the estimate of 4.94 million. This was the best showing we've seen since October,
The Australian dollar continues to trade at high levels and received a boost on Wednesday as CPI posted a gain of 0.5% in Q2, matching the estimate. However, there is room for concern as CPI gains continue to decrease, dating back to Q3 of 2013, when the index jumped 1.2%. There was good news from Trimmed CPI, which excludes volatile items that are included in CPI. The index posted a strong gain of 0.8% in Q2, also matching the forecast.
AUD/USD Technicals
S3 | S2 | S1 | R1 | R2 | R3 |
0.9119 | 0.9229 | 0.9361 | 0.9446 | 0.9617 | 0.9757 |
Further levels in both directions:
OANDA's Open Positions Ratio
AUD/USD ratio is pointing to gains in short positions on Thursday, continuing the trend which has marked the ratio for most of the week. This is consistent with the movement of the pair, as the Australian dollar has posted slight losses. The ratio has a majority of short positions, indicative of trader bias towards the US dollar continuing to move to higher ground.
AUD/USD Fundamentals
* Key releases are highlighted in bold
*All release times are GMT
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.