AUD/NZD skips back from 1.0880, Australian unemployment data inbound for Thursday

• The AUD/NZD is waffling ahead of Australian labor data.
• A lack of momentum for the pair is notable as the top continues to reinforce from 1.0880.
• Data-light Kiwi sees market flows as the primary driver.

The AUD/NZD pairing is taking a step down for Wednesday, back into familiar consolidation territory as the Aussie (AUD) struggles to find meaningful momentum against its next-door neighbor the Kiwi (NZD).

The AUD managed to squeeze past the 1.0880 handle yesterday, but couldn’t keep a grip and has slumped back, now trading into the 1.0860 region. The day’s low is currently marked in near 1.0845.

Australian employment figures coming down the pipe

The Aussie could be seeing some hesitation from traders as Australian labor data rounds the corner, with Employment Change and Unemployment Rate figures slated for early Thursday.

The Australian economy is forecast to have added 23K jobs to the landscape in August, an uptick from the previous month’s 14.6K decline. Meanwhile, the Unemployment Rate for the same period is broadly expected to hold steady at 3.7% month-over-month. Aussie bulls will no doubt be looking for a better-than-expected showing for labor data in order to push the AUD higher. Both indicators are slated to print at 01:30 GMT on Thursday.

The Kiwi remains drastically under-represented on the economic calendar this week, with little of note to bolster the NZD. BusinessNZ’s Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI), a diffusion index of purchasing managers within New Zealand’s manufacturing sector, will be landing late Thursday. Little market reaction will be expected, and forecasts for the indicator are generally not made. The industrial PMI has printed in the sub-50.0 region since March, and no big surprises are expected.

AUD/NZD technical outlook

The Aussie has largely traded into familiar territory against the Kiwi for much of the year, cycling deep consolidation territory and well off last year’s highs of 1.1490, a region that might as well be on another planet entirely.

Daily candlesticks are implying a mildly bullish bent, with lows slowly rising, but 1.0880 appears to represent the ceiling for the time being, and the rising trendline from 1.0725 is squeezing price action into the level.

The 100- and 50-day Simple Moving Averages remain flat and consolidated, currently parked near 1.0820, and it will take significant moves in either direction to reintroduce momentum to the moving averages.

AUD/NZD daily chart

AUD/NZD technical levels