Australian dollar exchange rates

Strong US data pulled the Aussie dollar down last night dropping to 0.6860 before recovering this morning. Yesterday the local unit held its ground closing at 0.6950. The Aussie had a mixed night on the crosses making small gains against the Kiwi, remaining steady against the Euro and opening down against the Japanese Yen and British Pound. The overnight releases of Housing and Industrial data combined in waves to send the greenback higher against all major currencies. Housing Starts data revealed a 0.7% decline in May after a 1.0% drop the previous month. Most analysts however estimated a drop of 1.0%. Following the announcement, the greenback rallied before the industrial figures came out. US industrial production surged 1.1% in the month of May led by Utilities and Business Equipment sectors. Combined with an increase in Industry Capacity Utilization, the strong figures helped the greenback higher later in the session. In other news, British unemployment hit an incredible 19 year low falling for the 12th month in a row down 12,000. The unemployment rate is currently at 2.8%. Average earning also rose this quarter by 4.3% adding steam to a charging Pound. Today’s session could once again test 0.6830 as the Aussie bear run continues. The Australian Dollar has lost over 12 cents or nearly 15% since peaking in February. Any break below 0.6830 could see a rapid continuation in the trend.