Commodity currencies such as the Australian, the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars weakened against their major counterparts in the Asian session on Wednesday, as investors tracked the lackluster cues overnight from Wall Street and digested a raft of regional economic data.
Investors are also cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy decision due later in the day. While the Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, investors are likely to keep a close eye on the accompanying statement.
Meanwhile, the New Zealand Dollar fell earlier in the day after the release of nation's weak jobs data in the fourth quarter of 2016.
Data from Statistics New Zealand showed that the jobless rate in New Zealand came in at a seasonally adjusted 5.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016, exceeding expectations for 4.8 percent, and up from the upwardly revised 4.9 percent in the third quarter.
On a yearly basis, the employment change gained 5.8 percent, shy of forecasts for 6.1 percent, which would have been unchanged.
In other economic news, data from the Australian Industry Group showed that the manufacturing sector in Australia continued to expand in January, although at a slower pace, with a Performance of Manufacturing Index score of 51.2. That's down sharply from 55.4 in December.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that the manufacturing sector in China continued to expand in January, albeit at a slightly slower pace, with a manufacturing PMI score of 51.3. That exceeded expectations for 51.2, although it was down from 51.4 in December.
The bureau also said that its non-manufacturing PMI came in at 54.6 in January, in line with forecasts and up from 54.5 in the previous month.
Tuesday, the Australian, the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars showed mixed trading against its major rivals. While the aussie rose against the U.S. dollar, it fell against the yen and the euro.
The NZ dollar rose against the U.S. dollar and fell against the yen. Against the euro, the kiwi held steady.
The Canadian dollar rose against the U.S. dollar and fell against the yen. Meanwhile, the loonie held steady against the euro.
In the Asian trading, the Australian dollar fell to a 3-week low of 1.4291 against the euro, from yesterday's closing value of 1.4229. The aussie is likely to find support around the 1.47 area.
Against the U.S. dollar and the yen, the aussie dropped to 0.7552 and 85.35 from yesterday's closing quotes of 0.7583 and 85.55, respectively. If the aussie extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 0.73 against the greenback, and 83.00 against the yen.
The NZ dollar fell to an 8-day low of 1.4866 against the euro and a 1-week low of 82.08 against the yen, from yesterday's closing quotes of 1.4763 and 82.47, respectively. If the kiwi extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 1.51 against the euro, and 80.00 against the yen.
Against the U.S. and the Australian dollars, the kiwi dropped to 2-day lows of 0.7259 and 1.0416 from yesterday's closing quotes of 0.7311 and 1.0370, respectively. The kiwi is likely to find support around 0.71 against the greenback and 1.05 against the aussie.
The Canadian dollar fell to an 8-day low of 1.4131 against the euro, from yesterday's closing value of 1.4067. The loonie is likely to find support around the 1.44 area.
Against the U.S. dollar, the yen and the Australian dollar, the loonie dropped to 1.3091, 86.34 and 0.9903 from yesterday's closing quotes of 1.3028, 86.55 and 0.9881 respectively. If the loonie extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 1.34 against the greenback, 84.00 against the yen, and 1.01 against the aussie.
Looking ahead, manufacturing PMI reports from major European economies for January are due to be released later in the day.
In the New York session, manufacturing PMI reports from U.S. and Canada for January, U.S. ADP private sector jobs data for January, U.S. construction spending for December and U.S. crude oil inventories data are set to be published.
At 2:00 pm ET, the Federal Reserve will announce its decision on monetary policy. The central bank is expected to hold its federal funds rates at 0.75 percent.
At 2:00 pm ET, Bundesbank Board Member Andreas Dombret is expected to speak about ECB policy in Frankfurt.
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April 24, 2026 15:15 ET Economics news flow was relatively light this week even as the conflict in the Middle East continued, raising concerns for policymakers. In the U.S., spending data, initial jobless claims and pending home sales were the highlights. Business confidence in the biggest euro area economy was in focus in Europe. Inflation data from Japan gained attention in Asia.