AUD/NZD dips, holding near 1.0850 ahead of Thursday’s Aussie employment figures

• The AUD/NZD slips back into consolidation ranges as the Aussie lacks momentum.
• Australian employment figures in the pipe will hopefully drive some fresh sentiment shifts.
• China data on Friday could produce knock-on effects for the AUD.

The AUD/NZD backslid to a daily low of 1.0840 in Wednesday’s trading, with the Aussie (AUD) backing up ahead of inbound labor market data due in the Thursday trading window. The Kiwi (NZD) remained relatively on balance, unmoved by a notable lack of economic calendar data on the docket for the New Zealand currency.

Aussie unemployment rate expected to hold steady

Markets are broadly expecting Australia’s Unemployment Rate to hold steady at 3.7% for the month of August, holding steady at the previous month’s figure. 

Meanwhile, Australian Employment Change for the month of August is expected to tick higher, with market analysts anticipating a printing of 23K, versus the previous period’s reading of a 14.6K decline.

The Kiwi remains under-represented on the economic calendar, but China data due on Friday, including Chinese Industrial Production figures and annualized Retail Sales for August, could see the Aussie gain some momentum with knock-on market effects.

China’s YoY Retail Sales for the month of August are expected to move upwards, from 2.5% to 3%, while Chinese Industrial Production figures are also expected to improve, forecast to print at 3.9% versus the previous 3.5%.

AUD/NZD Technical outlook

The AUD/NZD remains trapped firmly in the middle, with Wednesday’s Aussie slip into the red sending the pair firmly back into the recent consolidation region. The 100-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) continues to provide support for the longer candlestick periods, but the 50-day SMA continues to consolidate, reinforcing the middling patterns on the Aussie-Kiwi charts.

The current ceiling rests at the last meaningful swing high near 1.0920 in late July, with the floor priced in at early August’s drop-and-rebound from 1.0740.

AUD/NZD daily chart

AUD/NZD technical levels