THE Australian dollar was weaker today after positive US data saw investors cosy up to the US dollar.
At 7am (AEDT), the local unit was trading at 98.57 US cents, down from 99.54 cents yesterday.
Since 5pm (AEDT) yesterday, the Australian dollar traded between 98.44 US cents and 98.87 cents.
IG Markets Institutional Trader Chris Weston said the unit was lower in the wake of key US jobless and housing data released overnight (AEST).
"We saw the Aussie pull back today," Mr Weston said.
"We did see some reasonably good data coming out of the US economy. That made the US dollar more attractive."
In the US overnight, the Labor Department said the number of people seeking benefits fell by 37,000 to a seasonally adjusted 404,000 for the week ended January 15.
Also in the US, the National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes in the US jumped 12 per cent in December.
Mr Weston said there were also fears China might look to lift interest rates in 2011.
Yesterday, China surprised markets by announcing its economy had grown by 10.3 per cent in the year to December.
"People continue to be worried about what's happening in China. (Those) numbers do not suggest the Chinese economy is slowing down," Mr Weston said.
Meanwhile, at 12pm (AEDT) on the ASX 24, the March 10-year bond futures contract price was 94.345 (implying a yield of 5.655 per cent), down from yesterday's close of 94.425 (5.575 per cent).
The March three-year bond futures contract price was at 94.790 (5.210 per cent), down from 94.850 (5.150 per cent).
