Australian dollar update 15/11/2011

[John from Moneycorp]

The Aussie dollar managed to avoid the spotlight last week. That task was made easier by the market's obsession with developments in Euroland, where prime ministerial resignations were coming thick and fast. Italy's premier followed his Greek colleague out of the back door, making way for another non-political economist to take the helm. Having been less than enthusiastic about the Australian dollar during the early part of the week, investors rediscovered their appetite for it on Thursday and Friday.

 

Australian economic indicators were close enough to forecast that investors paid them little attention. Business confidence improved from -1 to +2, even though (current) business conditions apparently deteriorated from +2 to -1. Consumer confidence was up by 6.3%. Home loans rose by 2.2% in September. Employment grew by 10.1k in October, with only half as many new jobs as the previous month – but the unemployment rate was steady at 5.2%. There was nothing there to distinguish the Aussie, but nothing to trip it up either.