AUDUSD Hits One-Week High; Upbeat China Data Supports

Published on Oct 18, 2023 11:44

Improving sentiments on the back of upbeat data from China drove the Australian dollar to hit a one-week high above 0.64 mark on Wednesday. China`s gross domestic product expanded an annualized 4.9 percent on year in the third quarter of 2023. Retail sales recorded largest increase in the pace of trade since May and climbed by 5.5% year-on-year in September from a 4.6% rise in the prior month. China`s urban unemployment rate declined to 5.0% in September from 5.2% in August while industrial production growth was unchanged at 4.5% in September 2023, maintaining its highest reading since April. Industrial capacity utilization rate in China stood at 75.6 percent in the third quarter of 2023, unchanged from the same period a year earlier. Besides, a pull back in dollar rally ahead of Powell speech is also supporting upside in the Australian currency. AUDUSD is currently quoting at 0.6400, up 0.43% on the day.