The Australian dollar slumped today, reaching the lowest level in a year against the US dollar, as China’s manufacturing contracted this month and the US Federal Reserve hinted that quantitative easing may be reduced.
The HSBC Flash China Manufacturing Purchasing Managersâ Index dropped from 50.4 in April to 49.6 in May. It was expected to be little changed at 50.5. A reading below 50.0 indicates contraction of the sector. The Aussie (as the Australian currency is nicknamed) fell after the data and talks about an end to the Fed’s stimulus program did not help the currency either.
AUD/USD dropped from 0.9698 to 0.9646 as of 8:49 GMT today. AUD/JPY sank from 100.02 to 97.55.
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