Antipodean Currencies Fall Amid Global Trade War Concerns

(RTTNews) - The Antipodean currencies such as the Australia and the New Zealand dollars weakened against their major currencies in the Asian session on Thursday, as concerns about the impact of the ongoing trade war continue to weigh on the markets.

U.S. President Donald Trump escalated global trade tensions by threatening more tariffs on EU goods. Trump also hinted at financial repercussions if Russia rejects the Ukraine ceasefire proposal. Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs took effect on Wednesday, raising fears of a widening global trade war.

In economic news, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that the total number of building permits issued in Australia increased as initially estimated in January. Building consents climbed a seasonally adjusted 6.3 percent monthly to 16,579 units in January, much faster than the 1.7 percent gain in December. That was in line with the flash data published on March 6.

Permits for private sector houses rose 1.1 percent on month to 9,042, while consents for private sector dwellings excluding houses surged 12.7 percent to 7,213.

On a yearly basis, permits for private sector houses grew 8.9 percent, approvals for private sector dwellings excluding houses rallied 41.6 percent, and overall permits were up 21.7 percent.

Meanwhile, Australia's Consumer Inflation Expectations, which measure how much consumers estimate inflation to be over the next 12 months, dropped from 4.6% in February to 3.6% in March, the lowest level since April 2024.

In the Asian trading today, the Australian dollar fell to 0.6308 against the U.S. dollar and 1.7266 against the euro, from a recent 6-day high of 0.6334 and a 4-day high of 1.7188, respectively. If the aussie extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 0.61 against the greenback and 1.75 against the euro.

The aussie slid to 93.26 against the yen, from a recent high of 93.94. The aussie may test support near the 91.00 region.

Against the Canada and the New Zealand dollars, the aussie edged down to 0.9076 and 1.1012 from recent highs of 0.9097 and 1.1031, respectively. On the downside, 0.89 against the loonie and 1.09 against the kiwi are seen as the next support levels for the aussie.

The NZ dollar fell to a 2-day low of 84.30 against the yen, from a recent high of 85.17. The next possible downside target for the kiwi is seen around the 82.00 region.

Against the U.S. dollar and the euro, the kiwi edged down to 0.5709 and 1.9049 from recent 3-day highs of of 0.5742 and 0.8959, respectively. If the kiwi extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 0.50 against the greenback and 1.92 against the euro.

Looking ahead, Eurostat is slated to release euro area industrial production figures for January at 6:00 am ET in the European session. Industrial output is expected to grow 0.5 percent month-on-month in January, in contrast to the 1.1 percent decrease in December.

In the New York session, U.S. building permits for January, PPI for February and U.S. weekly jobless claims data are slated for release.