Australian Dollar Trades Sideways

2026-01-14 02:26 By Joshua Ferrer 1 min. read

The Australian dollar hovered around $0.668, trading is a sideways range, as investors assessed the prospect of a February interest rate hike.

The probability of the Reserve Bank raising its cash rate by a quarter point next month remained around 27%, down from nearly 40% last week, though markets see a 76% chance of a hike by May.

Investors continued to weigh a string of data, with a slight pullback in November inflation and falling consumer confidence adding uncertainty to a February rate move, while a 0.2% dip in job vacancies in the November quarter signaled stable labor demand.

However, strong November household spending could keep inflation elevated and support expectations of tighter policy.

The central bank’s next move will now largely depend on the Q4 CPI release due later this month, with a stronger-than-expected core reading likely to increase pressure for an early rate hike.

Markets are also watching next week’s December jobs report for further clues on monetary policy.



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