RTTN:Australian And New Zealand Dollars Fall On Equities Slide And China Data
(RTTNews) - The Australian and New Zealand dollars declined against their key counterparts in Asian trading on Friday as stocks retreated and amid some Chinese economic reports.
Asian stocks dropped after financial giant JPMorgan Chase & Co said it suffered a $2 billion trading loss from a "poorly executed" and "poorly monitored" hedging strategy.
Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index declined 10.50 points or 0.2 percent to 4,285.10 and the broader All Ordinaries index was down 11.10 points or 0.2 percent at 4,342.70.
New Zealand's NZX 50 index closed at 3,548.06 - down 20.99 points or 0.6 percent over its previous close.
In economic news from China, industrial output growth slowed unexpectedly in April, the latest figures from the National Bureau of Statistics said. Total production of the Chinese industrial sector grew 9.3 percent from a year earlier in April. Economists had expected the rate of growth to accelerate to 12.2 percent from 11.9 percent from March.
Production rose 0.35 percent on a monthly basis, the statistical office said.
A separate report from the statistical bureau showed that China's retail sales growth slowed more than expected in April.
Retail sales increased 14.1 percent year-on-year in April, slower than 15.2 percent increase in March. Economists had forecast the rate of growth to edge down to 15.1 percent.
Data released early in the day showed that inflation in China eased to 3.4 percent in April from 3.6 percent in March. The outcome was in line with economists' expectations. On a monthly basis, the consumer price index fell 0.1 percent.
Meanwhile, the producer price index dropped 0.7 percent year-on-year compared to forecast for a 0.5 percent fall.
The Australian dollar that ended Thursday's trading at 1.0085 against the U.S. dollar fell to near a 5-month low of 1.0021. If the aussie-greenback pair weakens further, it will fall below parity rate.
The Australian dollar slipped to 1.2891 against the euro and 1.0072 against the Canadian dollar, compared to yesterday's close of 1.2843 and 1.0107, respectively. The next downside target level for the aussie is seen at 1.291 against the euro and 1.006 against the loonie.
Against the Japanese yen, the Australian dollar declined to 79.99 with 79.7 seen as the next downside target level. At yesterday's close, the aussie-yen pair was quoted at 80.62.
The Australian dollar also dropped to 1.2814 against the New Zealand dollar from yesterday's closing value of 1.2837. The near term support level for the aussie-kiwi pair is seen at 1.280.
(RTTNews) - The New Zealand dollar also edged down, hitting lows of 62.41 against the yen and 1.6514 against the euro. If the kiwi weakens further, it may likely target 1.654 against the euro and 62.2 against the yen. The kiwi-yen and the euro-kiwi pairs were worth 62.83 and 1.6463, respectively at yesterday's close.
Against the U.S. dollar, the New Zealand dollar dipped to a 2-day low of 0.7819, compared to 0.7859 hit late New York Thursday. On the downside, 0.780 is seen as the next target level for the NZ currency.
Looking ahead, U.K. PPI for April and the Eurozone economic forecast report for 2012-2013 are slated for release in the European session.
Canada's jobs data for April, U.S. producer price index for April and the preliminary report of the Reuters/University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey for May are due in the New York morning session.
