AUD/USD retreated after weaker than expected employment data from Australia

Australian dollar lost ground against its US rival on Thursday, after a report showed that employers in Australia added fewer than projected job positions in September, as this data neutralized the positive influence, caused by the decreased rate of unemployment in the country.

AUD/USD slipped to a session low at 0.9390 at 5:15 GMT, after which consolidation followed at 0.9406, falling 0.41% for the day. Support was likely to be found at October 7th low, 0.9388, while resistance was to be met at September 19th high, 0.9524.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that employers added 9 100 jobs in September, following the loss of 10 200 jobs in August, but however, experts expectations were not met, as they had anticipated that job number will increase to 15 000.

At the same time, Australian unemployment rate fell to 5.6% in September from the highest level in four years at 5.8%, registered in August, while median estimates pointed that the rate will remain without change in September.

On the other hand, the labor participation rate dropped to 64.9% in September, marking its lowest point since November 2006, as a month ago it was 65%.

“We view this report as mixed but we do not believe it signals an improvement in the labor market,” Nomura Holdings Inc. strategists Charles St-Arnaud and Martin Whetton wrote in an e-mailed note to clients today. “Nevertheless, today’s report dramatically reduces the likelihood of an imminent rate cut and we now believe that the Reserve Bank of Australia will remain on hold at the November meeting.”

Additionally, during Wednesday’s Asian trade, PIMCO, the world’s largest bond manager, released a research note, in which revealed that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) might be forced to cut its benchmark interest rate again, in case other sectors of the economy do not pick up the pace, as activity in the mining industry seemed to be cooling. Australian central bank has reduced its benchmark by 225 basis points since the fall of 2011 to the current record low level of 2.50%.

Meanwhile, House Republican and Senate Democratic leaders are open to a short-term increase in the US debt ceiling, according to congressional aides of both parties. This development came, after House Democrats met with President Barack Obama at the White House. The US borrowing authority is expected to lapse no later than October 17th, while Republicans are in pursuit of spending cuts and changes to the nation’s 2010 health-care law, Bloomberg reported.

The US dollar was pushing up against its major peers yesterday, as markets were keenly expecting the release of the minutes of Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on September 17th-18th. The minutes revealed that most policymakers said the central bank was likely to trim the pace of its 85-billion-USD-per-month asset purchases this year. However, experts suggested that the bank will probably not make such a move at its meeting in October, as Chairman Ben Bernanke has not scheduled a press conference due to the partial US government shutdown. Most analysts expect that a possible scale back to Federal Reserves monetary stimulus could occur in December.

Elsewhere, the Aussie was lower against the euro as well, with EUR/AUD cross advancing 0.16% on a daily basis to trade at 1.4347 at 6:55 GMT. AUD/NZD pair was gaining 0.44% to trade at 1.1427 at 6:57 GMT.