The Australian held near one-month lows on Friday while the New Zealand dollar shed the week's gains as broad US dollar strength pressured global commodity prices. The Australian dollar fell to $0.7117, having shed 1.4 percent on Thursday. It went as deep as $0.7097, a major support level last touched in mid-November. The Aussie was on track to post a loss of 0.9 percent for the week, but fared better against the pound which is down 1 percent.
The New Zealand dollar felt the effects of the Fed's decision to raise interest rates, falling to $0.6688 after trading as high as $0.6801 the previous day. The kiwi took support from a survey out on Friday that showed job advertisements in New Zealand were up for the third consecutive month, rising 2 percent in November. The kiwi was expected to trade between $0.6670 and $0.6750, according to analysts. New Zealand government bonds gained, sending yields seven basis points lower. Australian government bond futures edged up in a bullish flattening of the curve. The three-year bond contract gained 3 ticks to 97.900, while the 10-year contract rose 5.5 ticks to 97.1400. The 20-year contract added 6 ticks to 96.6500.