Investing.com – The Australian dollar slipped against its U.S. counterpart on Monday, as concerns over sovereign debt contagion in the euro zone and weak U.S. jobs data weighed on risk appetite.
AUD/USD hit 1.0681 during late Asian trade, the pair’s lowest since July 6; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.0698, shedding 0.53%.
The pair was likely to find short-term support at 1.0653, the low of July 6 and resistance at 1.0787, Friday’s high.
Data on Friday showed that U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose by just 18,000 in June, far below the 89,000 increase forecast by economists, with employers hiring the fewest workers in nine months. The unemployment rate unexpectedly rose 0.1% to 9.2%.
Earlier Monday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said the number of home-loans granted rose by 4.4% in May, after rising by a downwardly revised 4.6% the previous month. Analysts had expected home-loan approvals to rise by 4.5% in May.
The report said that the increase came about as demand from investors increased and disruptions across Queensland State caused by flooding subsided, allowing construction projects to be restarted.
The Aussie was also lower against the yen, with AUD/JPY shedding 0.25% to hit 86.49.
Later in the day, senior European Union officials were to meet to discuss a second bailout package for Greece and assess the risk of the sovereign debt crisis spreading from Greece to Italy.
AUD/USD hit 1.0681 during late Asian trade, the pair’s lowest since July 6; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.0698, shedding 0.53%.
The pair was likely to find short-term support at 1.0653, the low of July 6 and resistance at 1.0787, Friday’s high.
Data on Friday showed that U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose by just 18,000 in June, far below the 89,000 increase forecast by economists, with employers hiring the fewest workers in nine months. The unemployment rate unexpectedly rose 0.1% to 9.2%.
Earlier Monday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said the number of home-loans granted rose by 4.4% in May, after rising by a downwardly revised 4.6% the previous month. Analysts had expected home-loan approvals to rise by 4.5% in May.
The report said that the increase came about as demand from investors increased and disruptions across Queensland State caused by flooding subsided, allowing construction projects to be restarted.
The Aussie was also lower against the yen, with AUD/JPY shedding 0.25% to hit 86.49.
Later in the day, senior European Union officials were to meet to discuss a second bailout package for Greece and assess the risk of the sovereign debt crisis spreading from Greece to Italy.