The Australian dollar has closed below 97 US cents for the third straight session as traders continue flocking to the greenback.
In late local trade, the unit was buying 96.42 US cents, down from 96.79 cents on Friday.
Commonwealth Bank currency strategist Peter Dragicevich said the US dollar was holding its strength as traders reassessed the prospect of the US Federal Reserve scaling back its purchase of American Treasury bonds.
‘‘It’s really a US dollar story,’’ he said. ‘‘We’ve seen the US dollar firm across the board and that’s been driven by expectations that the Fed could start to ease back on its stimulus over the next few months.’’
Chinese manufacturing data last week, showing a weakening of activity during May, is also hurting the Australian dollar as traders worry about a mining boom moderation.
‘‘They’ve all combined to weigh on the Aussie over the last few weeks,’’ Mr Dragicevich said.
The Australian dollar fell to a low of 96.15 US cents in late morning trade but this was above Thursday’s 95.94 US cent level, which was the weakest point since early June 2012.
The local currency is expected to trade within a tight range until the release on Thursday of capital expenditure data for the March quarter.
‘‘That would be the main focus in the near term,’’ Mr Dragicevich said.
