AUTRALIAN DOLLAR FORECAST: BEARISH
- The Australian Dollar continues to bump round in 2 cent vary
- RBA charge hike not sufficient to help AUD however trade numbers can’t be ignored
- China and Taiwan make the information, however a hawkish Fed may drive AUD/USD
The RBA charge resolution has come and gone with the broadly anticipated 50-basis level hike to 1.85% that despatched the Aussie south.
The transfer decrease was compounded by a lot of Fed audio system later that day, re-iterating the hawkish stance of the central financial institution, boosting the US Dollar.
AUD/USD then recovered going into the top of final week, sustaining a cushty place inside the 2-week vary of 0.6860 – 0.7050.
That restoration was helped by one other astonishing trade surplus of AUD 17.67 billion for the month of June. This beat the forecasts of AUD 14 billion and May’s surplus of AUD 15 billion. The charts under from the RBA inform the story of Australia’s commodity growth.
The unemployment charge of three.5% is as little as it has been in generations. First quarter GDP was 3.3% year-on-year and second quarter GDP will likely be launched early September.
Inflation apart, the Australian economic system has not often been in pretty much as good a form as it’s proper now. Yet, AUD/USD continues to languish, and this highlights the impression of the exterior atmosphere on the currency.
The go to of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan supplied many headlines for media shops to promote copy.
Someone with an extravagant affection for all issues communist is Hu Xijin. His twitter feed reads like a script from Saturday Night Live with none punch strains, but it surely does present an perception into the propaganda that mainland Chinese residents expertise each day.
The communist social gathering wanted a distraction from home points and what higher fireworks than a number of ballistic missiles to stoke nationalistic fervour.
Hu Xinjin is in his ingredient, stoking the flames of xenophobia with such gems as, “in the event of a maritime conflict between the US and China, the US carrier formation would be wiped out.”
Of course, the western media are additionally recognized to make extra of a narrative than maybe is there.. The communist social gathering have loved media story strains that aren’t a few property sector that’s spiralling towards an unknown consequence.
In any case, markets are largely ignoring the Taiwan state of affairs for now. The struggle in Ukraine continues to impression.
The focus for the week forward will likely be Fed audio system and market interpretations of the rhetoric.
All Fed audio system for the reason that Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) assembly have to this point spelled out fairly clearly that extra charge hikes are coming. The US Dollar and the charges market mirror this attitude.
Equity markets and excessive yield bonds are pricing in the alternative. As one pundit quipped concerning the equity market response to the FOMC charge resolution final week, it’s ‘dove at first sight’.
The RBA launched their Statement on Monetary Policy (SMP) on Friday, however there have been no surprises. They anticipate inflation to peak at 7.75% later this yr.
Without a CPI learn till late October, the central financial institution could as properly put the cue again in the rack. Jumbo hikes appear to be off the desk for now and 25-basis level charge rises seem like a secure possibility for the September and October conferences.
Looking forward for AUD/USD, it’s the USD aspect of the equation that seems prone to drive the worth motion. If the ‘big dollar’ resumes it ascending development, that will see the Aussie decrease.
The RBA’s SMP will be learn here.
— Written by Daniel McCarthy, Strategist for DailyFX.com
To contact Daniel, use the feedback part under or @DanMcCathyFX on Twitter