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Downbeat US data dampened expectations for a 2016 rate hike
The downbeat data fuelled concerns over the strength of the U.S. economy and dampened expectations for a 2016 rate hike by the Federal Reserve.
The Australian dollar edged higher against its U.S. counterpart on Monday, while the New Zealand dollar slid lower as markets were still digesting Friday’s downbeat U.S. economic reports.
AUD/USD added 0.17% to 0.7658.
The greenback weakened broadly after the U.S. Commerce Department said on Friday that retail sales were flat in July, compared expectations for a 0.4% rise. Core retail sales, which exclude automobile sales, fell by 0.3% in July.
A separate report showed that U.S. producer prices fell by 0.4% last month, disappointing expectations for a 0.1% rise. Year-over-year, producer prices decreased by 0.2%.
In addition, the University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index rose to 90.4, from July’s reading of 90.0. Analysts had forecast a larger increase to 91.5.
The downbeat data fuelled concerns over the strength of the U.S. economy and dampened expectations for a 2016 rate hike by the Federal Reserve.
Elsewhere the NZD/USD slid 0.36% to trade at 0.7175, off four-day lows of 0.7166 hit overnight.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was little changed at 95.68, after hitting a one-and-a-half week high of 95.19 on Friday.