The Australian dollar fell to a fresh 11-week low against the greenback on Wednesday and plumbed a six-month trough on its New Zealand counterpart after a surprise trade deficit added fuel to interest rate cut expectations. The Australian dollar last stood at $1.0271, having fallen as low as $1.0263 after data showed the country posted a trade deficit of A$480 million in February, versus the median forecast for a A$1.0 billion surplus.
"This reflects weak global trade in Q1 and that commodity prices peaked late last year," said Paul Bloxham, chief economist for Australia and New Zealand at HSBC. Weighed by the Aussie, the New Zealand dollar fell to $0.8162, from $0.8235 in late local trade Tuesday.