Australian Dollar strengthens against its peers ahead of US NFP data
- AUD/USD bounces back after Thursday’s losses and rises to near 0.7040 in the Asian trade on Friday.
- Soaring global oil prices are expected to prompt inflationary pressures further in Australia.
- Investors await the US NFP data for fresh cues on the Fed’s monetary policy outlook.
The AUD/USD pair trades 0.4% higher to near 0.7040 during the Asian trading session on Friday. The Aussie pair demonstrates strength as the Australian Dollar (AUD) outperforms across the board on expectations that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) could deliver another interest rate hike soon.
Australian Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of Australian Dollar (AUD) against listed major currencies today. Australian Dollar was the strongest against the US Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | -0.12% | -0.08% | -0.05% | -0.06% | -0.38% | -0.19% | -0.08% | |
| EUR | 0.12% | 0.04% | 0.07% | 0.06% | -0.26% | -0.07% | 0.03% | |
| GBP | 0.08% | -0.04% | 0.04% | 0.02% | -0.30% | -0.11% | -0.01% | |
| JPY | 0.05% | -0.07% | -0.04% | -0.01% | -0.33% | -0.15% | -0.04% | |
| CAD | 0.06% | -0.06% | -0.02% | 0.00% | -0.33% | -0.14% | -0.02% | |
| AUD | 0.38% | 0.26% | 0.30% | 0.33% | 0.33% | 0.19% | 0.29% | |
| NZD | 0.19% | 0.07% | 0.11% | 0.15% | 0.14% | -0.19% | 0.10% | |
| CHF | 0.08% | -0.03% | 0.00% | 0.04% | 0.02% | -0.29% | -0.10% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Australian Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent AUD (base)/USD (quote).
In February’s policy meeting, the RBA hiked its Official Cash Rate (OCR) by 25 basis points (bps) to 3.85%, and Governor Michele Bullock clarified that monetary conditions were needed to tighten as risks to inflation are tilted to the upside.
Meanwhile, surging oil prices due to the war in the Middle East that involves the United States (US), Israel, and Iran have prompted expectations of an RBA interest rate hike in the near term.
According to a report from Reuters, there is a 33% chance that the RBA may have to raise rates again to 4.1% in the policy meeting on March 17. A hike is fully priced in for May, with another one to come by the end of the year.
During the press time, the US Dollar (USD) trades calmly, with the US Dollar Index (DXY) wobbling around 99.00, as investors await the US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) data for February, which will be published at 13:30 GMT. Investors will pay close attention to the US official employment data to get fresh cues on the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) monetary policy outlook.
Broadly, the US Dollar has been outperforming its peers as the market sentiment remains risk-averse amid conflicts in the Middle East.
Nonfarm Payrolls FAQs
Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) are part of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics monthly jobs report. The Nonfarm Payrolls component specifically measures the change in the number of people employed in the US during the previous month, excluding the farming industry.
The Nonfarm Payrolls figure can influence the decisions of the Federal Reserve by providing a measure of how successfully the Fed is meeting its mandate of fostering full employment and 2% inflation. A relatively high NFP figure means more people are in employment, earning more money and therefore probably spending more. A relatively low Nonfarm Payrolls’ result, on the either hand, could mean people are struggling to find work. The Fed will typically raise interest rates to combat high inflation triggered by low unemployment, and lower them to stimulate a stagnant labor market.
Nonfarm Payrolls generally have a positive correlation with the US Dollar. This means when payrolls’ figures come out higher-than-expected the USD tends to rally and vice versa when they are lower. NFPs influence the US Dollar by virtue of their impact on inflation, monetary policy expectations and interest rates. A higher NFP usually means the Federal Reserve will be more tight in its monetary policy, supporting the USD.
Nonfarm Payrolls are generally negatively-correlated with the price of Gold. This means a higher-than-expected payrolls’ figure will have a depressing effect on the Gold price and vice versa. Higher NFP generally has a positive effect on the value of the USD, and like most major commodities Gold is priced in US Dollars. If the USD gains in value, therefore, it requires less Dollars to buy an ounce of Gold. Also, higher interest rates (typically helped higher NFPs) also lessen the attractiveness of Gold as an investment compared to staying in cash, where the money will at least earn interest.
Nonfarm Payrolls is only one component within a bigger jobs report and it can be overshadowed by the other components. At times, when NFP come out higher-than-forecast, but the Average Weekly Earnings is lower than expected, the market has ignored the potentially inflationary effect of the headline result and interpreted the fall in earnings as deflationary. The Participation Rate and the Average Weekly Hours components can also influence the market reaction, but only in seldom events like the “Great Resignation” or the Global Financial Crisis.
Author
Sagar Dua
FXStreet
Sagar Dua is associated with the financial markets from his college days. Along with pursuing post-graduation in Commerce in 2014, he started his markets training with chart analysis.
