A$ Range Trading Ahead of Fed Decision

Aussie is little changed ahead of the Fed decision later today, as is the greenback. AUDUSD is slightly higher at 0.6565 and so is the USD index. The pair has been moving in a narrow range between 0.6551 and 0.6567.

• AUDNZD is up 0.3% to 1.0729. It was hovering around 1.07 before Stats NZ released the November update of its new monthly CPI series, which points to downside risks to the RBNZ’s Q4 forecast.
• There is little movement in the other major crosses with AUDJPY flat around 95.43, AUDEUR at 0.6082 and AUDGBP at 0.5226.
• The AUD was little changed following the government’s Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook, as expected the budget and debt ratio projections improved compared with May’s budget.
• Equity markets are mixed with the ASX up 0.3% but the Hang Seng down 0.4%. The S&P e-mini is up 0.1%. Oil prices are down moderately during APAC trading after sinking on Tuesday. Brent is down 0.3% to $73.05/bbl. Copper is down 0.1% and iron ore $134-135/t.
• Later the Fed decision is announced but it is widely expected to leave rates unchanged (see Mni Fed Preview). There will also be updated forecasts and a press conference. On the data front there’s US November PPI data and UK & euro area IP. This afternoon CBA’s household spending insights print and tomorrow there are MI inflation expectations and November labour market data.