The Canadian Unemployment Rate came out less than expected late last week. The figures came out flat at 7%, expectations were 6.9%. The CAD instantly sold off after this announcement. However it found fundamental support from the employment that was created in the Canadian economy. CAD employment change came out at +25.8K from a previous disappointing figure of -28.9K.
Heading over to the United States late Friday night last week, investors found slightly better news. This was primarily because of Non-farm Payrolls, which came in slightly better than expected at 217K from expected figures of 215K. The US Unemployment Rate came on a slight positive note, the figure being stable from the previous month’s result of 6.3%, but beating the expectation of 6.4%.
Overall, sentiment levels from investors came out at a null as USD and CAD rates fell slowly against the AUD. In a big positive for the Aussie economy, Chinese exports grew sharply for May from the previous month’s marginal 0.9% rise to a healthy 7% increase. Chinese imports shrunk for May, this figure being generally more watched by Australian investors as it directly affects Australian exports. The overall Chinese trade balance figure came in at 35.9B from April’s figure of 18.5B, a massive outperform. Needless to say this did and continuously has supported the AUD since its release yesterday.
On a final note, RBA Governor Glenn Stevens speaks tomorrow in the USA. The topic will be covering financial regulation in Australia; potentially affecting the AUD with market participants extrapolating future RBA actions based on what is said.