Australian Dollar: In recent risk-off trade the Australian Dollar has been one of the hardest hit, giving up some vital ground in the past 24 hours. In addition to its vulnerability to current offshore economic and political events, the Aussie was not helped by local data yesterday morning as Corporate Profit data came in negative. After it was announced the quarterly figures fell 1.5% in contrast to an expected 4.3% increase, AUD/USD quickly crashed through 0.9600 finding support at 0.9580. Despite a corrective movement for the remainder of the Asian session, risk aversion seized the market overnight and lows of 0.9570 were reached before a brief rally took the Aussie back above 96 cents to open today around 0.9630. The economic calendar is looking rather crowded today as well, with Building Approvals, Current Account figures and Private Sector Credit bound to create additional volatility.

We expect a range today of 0.9570 - 0.9720

New Zealand Dollar: Business Confidence in New Zealand rose 9.5 points it was announced yesterday, however this did little to quell the Kiwi's susceptibility to the current offshore climate. Testing support at 0.7450 during Asian trade yesterday the NZD bounced back to highs of 0.7535 before falling victim to the Greenback along with most of its major counterparts. The Kiwi fell a full cent overnight before finding a bottom at 0.7430 and we open marginally higher this morning at 0.7470. Some choppy yet uneventful trade ensued against the Australian Dollar since the start of the week and we open today with one New Zealand Dollar buying 77.6 Aussie cents.

We expect a range today of 0.7410 - 0.7520

Great British Pound: Housing figures are once again a topic of conversation in the UK with mortgage approvals falling to a 6mth low, slightly lower than last month but 17% less than this time last year. An increase in lending to the individual failed to support the Pound and in conjunction with European debt woes and general risk aversion it fell to lows of 1.5530. Some mild profit-taking has seen Sterling recover slightly and consolidate around 1.5570 at the beginning of today's Asian session. With commodities taking a battering of late, the Great British Pound has managed to claim some ground against the Aussie and the Kiwi, opening today at 1.6160 and 2.0840.

We expect a range today of 1.6050 - 1.6220

Majors: The Greenback has continued its recovery overnight as markets remain shrouded by a cloud of risk aversion. Events in Europe and Korea have seen the Dollar rally strongly against most of its major counterparts, with the EUR being pushed below 1.3100 and the USD/JPY in sight of 84.40. Yesterday we saw the Euro being provided with some initial support after the Irish bailout was confirmed; however as further details emerged investors lost confidence in the package and the shared currency quickly lost ground. Focus also shifted to Spain and Portugal upon Ireland's stay of execution, with bond spreads widening and the cost of insuring against the countries' debt against default rose to record levels. After a dramatic slide during offshore trade the Euro found support at 1.3060 and currently is trading quietly around 1.3120. In the battle of the safe-haven currencies, the US Dollar is winning out and opens today against the Yen holding above 84.20.

Data releases

AUD: Building Approvals m/m; Current Account; Private Sector Credit m/m

NZD: Building Consents m/m

JPY: Average Cash Earnings y/y; Housing Starts y/y

GBP: GfK Consumer Confidence

EUR: Unemployment Rate; German Unemployment Change; CPI Flash Estimate y/y

USD: Chicago PMI; S&P/CS Composite-20 HPI y/y

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