{
  "id": 1615929,
  "title": "Australia, NZ dollars near multi-week peaks as greenback creaks",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/australia-nz-dollars-near-multi-week-peaks-as-greenback-creaks",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-08-18T02:11:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Straits Times Business",
    "slug": "straits-times-business",
    "url": "https://www.straitstimes.com/business/australia-nz-dollars-near-multi-week-peaks-as-greenback-creaks"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On August 18, the Australian and New Zealand dollars were hovering near multi-week peaks as the US dollar showed signs of weakening. The Australian dollar reached a 10-week high of US$0.7129, while the New Zealand dollar hit a similar 10-week high of US$0.5926. The US dollar eased despite a rise in Treasury yields, reigniting discussions about diversifying away from the US currency.\n\nThe Aussie dollar climbed to 113.27 against the yen, extending its recovery from a low of 109.19 observed after Japan and the US intervened in late July. Meanwhile, the kiwi dollar also touched a 10-week high of US$0.5926 and drew demand against the yen, climbing to 113.27.\n\nTim Baker, a macro strategist at Deutsche Bank, pointed out that recent US economic data had missed forecasts while news from developed nations had improved. Baker noted, \"It's denting the US growth exceptionalism picture,\" suggesting that the dollar tends to lag when growth appears solid elsewhere in the world.\n\nA survey released on August 18 indicated that Australian consumer sentiment had improved markedly after the Reserve Bank of Australia decided to keep interest rates at 4.35 percent, following three hikes earlier in the year. Job data due on August 20 is expected to show a gain of 15,000 jobs in July, continuing the strong trend of June's 76,300 increase. The unemployment rate is projected to stay at 4.4 percent, showing little change from a year ago.\n\nThe sell-off in Treasuries led to an increase in Australian 10-year yields to 5.047 percent, a rise of 6 basis points over two sessions. The spread over US debt remained relatively unchanged at 32 basis points. The Australian government is set to sell a new 2038 bond on August 18, which is anticipated to attract strong investor demand. Additionally, tech giant Alphabet plans to sell paper in its first Australian deal, which could potentially be the largest corporate issue ever for the country.",
  "summary": "The Aussie dollar also drew demand against the yen.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}