The AUD slipped Thursday ahead of a key Italian debt auction later in the day as trepidation about Europe continued to weigh on the risk-sensitive currency. The mood surrounding Europe was detrimental to more than just the AUD, with prices of equities and commodities in the region also falling sharply in a holiday-thinned day of trading. Further hitting sentiment, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost more than 140 points in trading in the U.S. session. Even so, the AUD recovered some of its losses as the Asian session wore on, with more gains possible when European traders logged on. Of particular focus for traders was an auction of long-dated Italian bonds later on Thursday following a successful tender of short-dated paper on Wednesday.
At 0445 GMT, the AUD was trading at US$1.0085, down from US$1.0158 late Wednesday, though up from a session low of US$1.0046. Against the JPY, the AUD changed hands at Y78.454, down from Y78.984.
EasyForexNews Research Team