AUD/USD reacts to interest rate decisions, broader economic data

The AUD/USD pair has reached the 0.6750s on Friday, but it is trading at 0.6738 at the time of writing due to the speculation that the US central bank may not raise interest rates again for some time. This has impacted the US Dollar at the same time that the Reserve Bank of Australia has turned hawkish.  

Data yesterday was showing that the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits surged to the highest in more than 1-1/2 years last week.

Markets are also digesting data in Asia that showed China’s falling producer prices and weak consumer inflation have added to the concern about the health of the world’s second-largest economy. Earlier of Friday, the US dollar was under pressure on Friday, particularly against the AUD and the NZD, which are outperforming. While the RBA and Bank of Canada have raised rates, expectations are that the Fed will hit the pause button next week.