- AUD is barely moving in repose to upbeat Aussie data.
- Both trade balance and housing data bettered estimates.
- Risk-off likely keeping AUD under pressure.
AUD/USD continues to trade in the red despite the release of a better-than-expected Aussie housing and international trade data.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data released at 01:30 GMT showed Australia’s outbound shipments rose 4% in May and imports rose 2%, leading to a trade surplus of A$ 5,745 million. The market was expecting the surplus to widen to A$ 5,250 million from April’s figure of A$ 4,871 million.
Further, building permits rose 0.7% month-on-month in May, having dropped by 4-7% In the preceding month. Markets were expecting a print of 0.0%.
Even so, the Aussie dollar is finding little love. As of writing, the currency pair is trading at 0.6990, representing 0.10% losses on the day. The pair has barely moved following the above-forecast macro data.
The AUD’s inability to cheer the upbeat Aussie macro data could be associated with the risk-off tone in the global markets. The US 10-year treasury yields are currently trading at the lowest level since November 2016 and the anti-risk Japanese Yen is pushing higher, possibly due to White House trade advisor Pete Navarro’s comments that complicated US-China trade talks “will take time”.
Looking forward, the currency pair will likely remain on the defensive, unless risk appetite improves and the JPY drops.
Pivot points
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