Conflict Heats Up, Will AUD Be Dragged In?
The Australian Dollar (AUD) depreciated against the US Dollar (USD) on Thursday (19/06), retracing its latest gains recorded in the previous session. The AUD/USD pair declined after the release of employment data from Australia. The risk-sensitive pair also struggled due to weakening risk sentiment amid rising Middle East tensions.
Australian Employment Change fell by 2.5 thousand in May compared to a gain of 87.6 thousand in April (revised from 89 thousand) and the consensus estimate of a rise of 25 thousand. Furthermore, the Unemployment Rate was stable at 4.1% in May, as expected.
Bloomberg quoted unnamed sources on Thursday, reporting that "US officials are bracing for a possible Iranian attack in the coming days." "US plans for any Iranian attack continue to evolve." In addition, the Wall Street Journal cited people familiar with the discussions as saying that US President Trump said late Tuesday that he approved the plan to attack Iran, but held off on seeing if Tehran would halt its nuclear program.
Source: FXStreet