The Australian dollar slumped today as the decline of China’s manufacturing unexpectedly accelerated last quarter, reigniting concerns about growth in the major Asian economy and the biggest trading partner of Australia.
Inflation report from Australia came out today, but hardly affected the currency as it was stable and in line with forecasts. Consumer prices rose 0.4 percent in the second quarter of 2013, at the same rate as in the first quarter.
Data about China’s manufacturing was the factor that really caused the slump of the Aussie. The HSBC Flash China Manufacturing Purchasing Managersâ Index dropped from 48.2 in June to 47.7 in July. It was the lowest level in eleven months. Analysts have expected an increase to 48.6.
AUD/USD dropped from 0.9293 to 0.9139 (1.4 percent) as of 23:23 GMT today. EUR/AUD jumped from 1.4223 to 1.4433, while AUD/JPY sank from 92.39 to 91.69.
If you have any questions, comments or opinions regarding the Australian Dollar,
feel free to post them using the commentary form below.