Australian Dollar Holds Losses as US Dollar Remains Solid Ahead of PCE Inflation
The Australian Dollar (AUD) retraces its recent gains from the previous session against the US Dollar (USD) following the People’s Bank of China’s (PBoC) monetary policy decision on Friday. China’s central bank decided to keep its one- and five-year Loan Prime Rates (LPRs) unchanged at 3.10% and 3.60%, respectively, in the fourth quarterly meeting.
Australia's Private Sector Credit grew by 0.5% month-over-month in November, aligning with expectations. This followed a 0.6% increase in October, which marked the fastest monthly growth in four months. On an annual basis, Private Sector Credit rose by 6.2% in November, the highest growth rate since May 2023, up slightly from 6.1% in October.
The Aussie Dollar faces pressure as traders increasingly anticipate that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) may begin cutting its 4.35% cash rate as early as February, amid mounting signs of an economic slowdown. Attention now shifts to the release of the RBA's latest meeting minutes due next week.
The US Dollar strengthened after the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Annualized reported a 3.1% growth rate in the third quarter, surpassing both market expectations and the previous reading of 2.8%. Additionally, Initial Jobless Claims dropped to 220,000 for the week ending December 13, down from 242,000 in the prior week and below the market forecast of 230,000.
Traders will likely observe the US Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) data, scheduled to be released by the US Bureau of Economic Analysis on Friday.
Source : FXStreet
