Forexpros - The Australian dollar was up against its U.S. counterpart on Monday, rising to a one-week high as better-than-expected Japanese economic data and strong U.S. retail sales figures helped ease fears over the global economy, boosting demand for higher-yielding currencies.
AUD/USD hit 1.0441 during late Asian trade, the highest since August 8; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.0422, gaining 0.63%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.0244, last Friday's low and resistance at 1.0526, the high of August 5.
Preliminary data released earlier in the day showed that Japan's economy contracted by 0.3% in the second quarter, or 1.3% on an annualized basis.
Analysts had expected Japan's economy to contract by 0.9% in the quarter, or 2.5% on an annualized basis.
Meanwhile, government data released Friday showed that U.S. retail sales rose by 0.5% in July, the biggest gain in four months.
The Aussie found further support after the Australian Bureau of Statistics said that new motor vehicle sales jumped by 8.6% in July, the biggest gain since December 2000.
Meanwhile, the country's Treasurer Wayne Swan said over the weekend that Australia's economy can "ride out" the turbulence in global markets, while adding that "the prospects for our region remain much stronger" than for Europe and the U.S.
Elsewhere, the Aussie was higher against the yen, with AUD/JPY climbing 0.94% to hit 80.12, after Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said that he will continue to "closely watch the markets and take bold action if it becomes necessary."
Later in the day, the U.S. was to produce official data on manufacturing activity in New York State and a report on the balance of domestic and foreign investment in the U.S.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
