Rates At 0520 GMT Latest Change AUD/USD 1.0085 -1.02% AUD/JPY 78.56 -1.27% 6.50% May, 2013 3.1809% -0.0383 4.50% Mar, 2020 3.7097% -0.0445 10-Yr Spread To U.S. +181 bps +7 pts SFE Dec 3-Year Futures 96.90 +0.055 SFE Dec 10-Year Futures 96.14 +0.07 SYDNEY (Dow Jones)--The Australian dollar slid in Asian trading Tuesday as markets registered increasing disappointment with the results of last week's European Union summit. Weighing on investor sentiment, ratings firms sharply criticized the results of the summit, adding to the skepticism that the accord struck by European leaders was enough to contain the euro zone sovereign debt crisis. Fitch Ratings predicted a "significant" economic downturn in Europe and said the crisis was likely to continue throughout 2012, while Moody's Investors Service said the crisis remains in a "critical and volatile stage." The Australian dollar was particularly hard hit in the aftermath of the credit-ratings firms' comments, with Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, forecasting more weakness in the coming days even after the local currency pared some of its declines late in Asia. "I expect to see a test of parity (with the U.S. dollar) in the next 48 hours," said McCarthy, adding the key for the next move will be "U.S. inflation and jobs data later in the week. The data over the last couple months has been mostly mixed, but I expect these numbers to disappoint and create a slightly weaker U.S. dollar." At 0520 GMT, the Australian dollar was trading at US$1.0085, down from US$1.0165 late Monday, but up from a session low of US$1.0026. Against the Japanese yen, the Australian dollar changed hands at Y78.56, down from Y78.96 late Monday. While the currency slid, much of the focus in the local bond market was an announcement from the government that it was planning new measures to entice retail investors into government bonds as part of a wider push to deepen the country's debt markets. Australia's A$1.4 trillion pension savings pool is one of the world's biggest, but investors favor equities over fixed-income products with only about 16% of the country's pension industry invested in bonds, according to the Association of Superannuation Funds in Australia. It is that imbalance that the government is now seeking to address, Treasurer Wayne Swan said Monday. -By Geoffrey Rogow, Dow Jones Newswires; +61-2-8272-4686; geoffrey.rogow@dowjones.com (Data provided by Reuters)

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