The Aussie dollar made small gains overnight despite weaker equities markets and a subdued commodities market. Iron ore, which is probably our most important export has continued to post gains through the early stages of 2018 after a tumultuous year in which the commodity traded in a very wide range between US$95 a tonne and US$53 a tonne. Right now we’re closing in on US$80 a tonne with some forecasters suggesting US$100 a tonne is not out of the realm of possibility – I tend to think that’s unlikely unless a country like India, the U.S or Japan rapidly increase their infrastructure spending as more infrastructure generally equals more steel!
Chinese economic data was mixed yesterday however U.K manufacturing production came in better than expected for the month of November, additionally the October figure was revised higher. AUD/GBP didn’t fall however rather we saw the currency pair move higher busting back above 0.5800 for the time being.
Ahead today is local retail sales numbers at 11.30am. The figures we will see are not for December but rather November’s retail sales numbers so we should get a glimpse into what may be in store for the December figure which will be released early next month. Assuming a strong number we could probably expect the AUD to track higher.
AUD EXCHANGE RATES:
AUD/USD – 0.7838
AUD/GBP – 0.5802
AUD/EUR – 0.6555
AUD/NZD – 1.0892
AUD/JPY – 87.324
COMMODITIES:
Gold – A$1680/oz
Silver – A$21.67/oz
WTI – US$63.31/barrel
DATA RELEASES TODAY:
CNY – CPI and PPI at 12.30pm
GBP – Manufacturing Prodn at 8.30pm
***Above rates are indicative wholesale rates and intended as a guide only***
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Patrick Downes
Senior Corporate FX Dealer
Phone Patrick – 0431 278 632
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