Money and Forex Blog

:: Australian Dollar: It has been another volatile 24 hours for the Australian Dollar which opens today at 0.8261. Risk aversion and a sharply weaker local equity market on Tuesday took the unit down to 0.8120. The sell-off continued in Europe with the Aussie testing the 10-month low of 0.8060 amid fresh concerns over the stability of Europe’s financial system. Stronger-than-expected U.S. consumer confidence led to a late rally on Wall Street and the Aussie recovered some lost ground. 0.8060 – 0.8360 has been the range over the last few days and we may briefly test the higher end this morning if there is a positive lead on the local share market.

- We expect a range today in the AUD/USD rate of 0.8060 to 0.8360

:: Great Britain Pound: Pound Sterling opens marginally lower against the greenback at 1.4400 after some positive economic data. First quarter gross domestic product rose 0.3 per cent compared to the final 3 months of 2009. A separate report showed manufacturing surged 1.2 per cent – the most in three years. Sterling is likely to remain under pressure however amid continued risk aversion and a strengthening greenback across the board. Meanwhile, the pound is lower against both the Australian Dollar (1.7390) and the New Zealand Dollar (2.1480).

- We expect a range today in the GBP/AUD rate of 1.7340 to 1.7520

:: New Zealand Dollar: The New Zealand Dollar opens at 0.6690 today and remains under pressure as fear and panic grip currency and equity markets. The kiwi hit at 10-month low of 0.6559 during early European trade amid fresh concerns over the stability of Europe’s financial system. Stronger-than-expected consumer confidence data released overnight in the United States also strengthened the greenback against several major currencies. Volatility and wider-than-normal trading ranges are expected to continue this week.

- We expect a range today in the NZD/USD rate of 0.6580 to 0.6790

:: Majors: The Euro remains under extreme pressure across the board and opens at 1.2340 against the greenback. The-16-nation currency hit an overnight low of 1.2176 amid continued concerns about the debt crisis in Europe and comments from the International Monetary Fund that Spain had been too slow in strengthening its banking system. Risk assets were sold heavily overnight with the Canadian Dollar hitting a 6-month low. Meanwhile, the big dollar opens at 90.20 against the Japanese Yen after U.S. consumer confidence increased in May. The index rose to a 2-year high of 63.3, exceeding economists’ forecasts.

:: Data Releases:
AUD: Westpac Leading Index, March
CAD: No data today
EUR: No data today
GBP: No data today
JPY: No data today
NZD: No data today
USD: Ben Bernanke Speech; Durable Goods Orders & New Home Sales, April