Positive Australian jobs data were released today, but did little to help lift the AUD/USD pair. Employment grew by 21,000, which was better than the expected growth by 10,000, and far better than the contraction by 700 in the previous period. Fulltime employment was also up by 15,500, which shrunk by 31,000 in the last period. Meanwhile, part-time employment was also up by 5,500 but was lower than the previous growth by 28,900.
These data could have helped lift the AUD/USD pair. However, these are just snapshots of Australia's performance in a month. Unemployment is largely expected in the long term as its mining industry shrinks, plus the announcement that GM would close its Holden plant in 2017, which would cause more unemployment. On top of that, the greenback is gaining strength on expectations that Stanley Fischer (known for his bullish outlook) would be nominated as the next Fed Vice Chair, as well the US budget deal closed by the US House of Representatives (although it is still subject to the approval of the Senate and the President).
So despite the growth in employment in Australia, the AUD/USD pair largely sank in today's Asian session. It opened at 0.9045, which quickly peaked at 0.9060, but has since slid down and is currently trading at 0.9027. Initial resistance for the pair is at 0.9108, followed by 0.9131. Meanwhile, initial support is at 0.8990, followed by 0.8968.
The USD/JPY pair's return to the 103.00 zone since May 2013 has so far been a shaky one. It is back again below that level and opened today's session at 102.54. It peaked at 102.75 almost two hours later, but is once back on a downtrend. It is currently trading at 102.53.
Initial resistance for the pair is at 102.69, followed by 102.94. Meanwhile, initial support is at 101.88, followed by 101.62.
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