Australian Dollar jumps on Employment- Economy added 52,700 Jobs in January.

from MoneyTrading.com.au

The Australian dollar surged as strong jobs data revived talk of a rate rise as early as March. The Australian dollar rose more than 1% against the dollar and the yen, getting a lift from data showing a bigger-than-expected rise in Australian employment in January and a fall in the jobless rate to an 11-month low.

Australian Bureau of Statistics reported today that the country’s unemployment rate declined 0.2 percentage point to 5.3% in January, an 11-year low. The number of people employed rose 52,700 to 10.966 million in the period, the largest increased in employment since December 2006.

AUD/USD last traded at 0.8884, facing resistance at 0.8910. We are Long AUD/USD, EUR/USD.

Australian Dollar Up as traders speculate further rate rise

from MoneyTrading.com.au

The Australian dollar closed higher as risk appetite improved and traders continued to speculate about further interest rate rises in Australia and funding assistance for Greece.

At 1700 AEDT, the Australian dollar was trading at $US0.8686/91, up 0.25 per cent from Monday's close of $US0.8664/66.

From 0700 AEDT, the local unit traded between $US0.8615 and $US0.8704. At 1600 AEDT, the RBA's trade weighted index (TWI) was at 67.8 points, up from Monday's close of 67.7.