Australian employment data was somewhat confusing last week– with a rise in the unemployment rate but a pleasant gain in jobs.
The Aussie unemployment rate rose from a mere 5.1% back to 5.3%. Australia’s rate is still one of lowest in the Western world. It was at the 5.1 per cent mark for the past two months, and in the previous two months was at 5.4%. There was also more good news as the Australian Unemployment Change showed a gain of 23,500 jobs. Only 20 100 was expected by some economists in the market.
The Aussie fell after the jobless claims in the US rose unexpectedly and equities dropped, damping the investors’ willingness to risk and diminishing the appeal of the higher-yielding currencies. The initial unemployment claims rose to 484,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 482,000. The analysts were totally wrong, expecting the decrease to 465,000. There are more and more evidences appear every day about the deteriorating of the global economy and the talks about the possible double-dip recession persist. In this kind of environment the riskier currencies have hard times to find the support. The Aussie rallied by the end of the week as strong economic growth in European power-house Germany helped counter fears of a global slowdown and revive appetite for risk.
AUD/ GBP: 0, 5742
AUD/ EUR 0, 6974
AUD/ USD: 0, 8945
AUD/ JPY: 76, 7993
Exchange rates as of 16:17, 13 August 2010
: Note: The above exchange rates are based on "interbank" rates.
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RBA keeps interest rates unchanged
www.australiantimes.co.uk/currency