NAB Business Confidence Index slumps to -66 in March, AUD/USD unfazed
- NAB Survey sees steepest falls on record in March.
- Australian economy is likely to see its first recession in three decades.
- AUD/USD unperturbed by horrible data, extends gains above 0.64.
National Australia Bank’s (NAB) index of business conditions plunged to -21 points in March vs. 1 expected and 0 last.
The survey’s volatile measure of business confidence crashed to -66 in March vs. -2 expected and -4 seen in February. The gauge fell to the lowest in the history of the series.
NAB Group Chief Economist Alan Oster said: "Worryingly, but not surprisingly, business's outlook is the weakest ever. The business has essentially told us that trading conditions, profitability and employment all went backwards in a big way in the month.”
"We expect a recession of unprecedented speed and magnitude for the Australian economy over the next three quarters. This will see a sharp increase in unemployment,” Oster added.
AUD/USD reaction
Australian dollar stands resilient to the awful March NAB Business Survey, as AUD/USD refreshes daily highs above 0.6400. A better market mood and firmer commodities' prices collaborate with the upside in the aussie.
At the time of writing, AUD/USD trades 0.56% higher at 0.6416, having hit a daily high of 0.6420 in the last minutes.
Author
Dhwani Mehta
FXStreet
Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.
