Futures traders have put their bets on the Aussie dollar gaining on the US dollar, figures from the Washington-based Commodity Futures Trading Commission show.

The so-called net longs placed by mostly hedge funds that the Aussie dollar will advance against the US dollar have increased to 23, 480 on July 13, compared with net longs of 7,246 a week earlier.

On the other hand, the Australian bond futures rose, with the 10-year contract for September delivery at 94.90 on the Sydney Futures Exchange from 94.88 late last week. The implied yield on the futures stood at 5.10 percent. The implied yield on three-year futures was 4.6 percent. New Zealand's two-year swap rate, a fixed payment made to receive floating rates, fell to 4.13 percent from 4.19 percent.

Benchmark interest rates are 4.5 percent in Australia and 2.75 percent in New Zealand, compared with as low as zero in the U.S., attracting investors to the South Pacific nations' higher-yielding assets.