By Alex Ho
The U.S. dollar was near flat on Monday in Asia, while the Aussie dollar gained ahead of the release of the country’s latest jobs data.
The U.S. dollar index was near flat at 97.365. Figures released by the Commerce Department on Friday showed U.S. housing starts in December were well above economists' estimates for 1.38 million and were the biggest gain in 13 years.
Retail sales were also on the rise and a gauge of manufacturing activity rebounded to its highest in eight months.
The positive data reduced chances that the Federal Reserve would slash rates when it meets later this month.
Meanwhile, the AUD/USD pair rose 0.2% to 0.6886 as traders awaited Australian jobs data due on Thursday. The Reserve Bank of Australia meets next month and might announce further stimulus following three rate cuts last year amid widespread bushfires.
The NZD/USD pair also rose 0.2% to 0.6620.
The Chinese yuan gained 0.2% against the U.S. dollar after jumping late last week on strong economic growth figures. China reported that its gross domestic product grew 6% in the fourth quarter, meaning economic growth slowed to 6.1% in 2019. While this is in line with expectations, it’s also the country’s weakest growth in nearly three decades.
The USD/JPY pair was near flat at 110.17.
