The Australian dollar held above 76 US cents on Tuesday, buoyed by its yield advantage over the US dollar, and by higher gold prices with Iran expected to stand firm on its nuclear enrichment plans.
The Aussie dollar also nudged higher after retailer Coles Myer confirmed late in the session that it was being wooed by a consortium of leveraged buyout funds, following days of speculation about a foreign take-over worth A$16 billion.
The Aussie dollar traded at $0.7616/21, up quarter-of-a-cent on a day earlier, but was confined to a narrow $0.7611-$0.7623 intra-day range.
It also broke a three-week losing streak against the higher-yielding kiwi dollar that had seen it tumble from NZ$1.2450 to NZ$1.1820.