Australian dollar in narrow stage

The Australian dollar stayed in a narrow range near an 18-year high against the US currency on Thursday, supported by gains versus the yen before key interest rate decisions in Europe later in the session.
With a benign local minimum wage ruling and without any domestic economic data until next week, investors await decisions by the Bank of England and the European Central Bank on rates.
The Aussie and the kiwi dollar have also benefited from riskier bets on yen carry trades, in which investors borrow the low-yielding yen to invest in high-yielding currencies. The Aussie/yen was quoted at 105.25/35 yen, compared with 104.95/105.05 yen here late on Wednesday, according to Reuters data. It ranged from 105.06 yen to 105.28 yen.