Australian dollar edges higher after first weekly gain in five, kiwi lags

The Australian dollar edged up 0.2 per cent to $0.6994 on Monday, according to Business Recorder, reversing a four-week slide with a 0.4 per cent gain last week. The move lifted the currency above its seven-day moving average of $0.6972, though it remains well below its September peak at $0.7238. Investors awaited RBA minutes and local jobs data for clues on the direction of rates.

The New Zealand dollar was flat at $0.5607 after a 0.2 per cent weekly fall, and is more than 6 per cent below its mid-August peak. ANZ strategist David Croy said the kiwi has been the weakest currency in the G10 group, and the NZD trade-weighted index has reached levels last seen in 2011. Swaps imply a 58 per cent chance of a quarter-point rate rise to 3.0 per cent at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's October 28 meeting.

Australia's September jobs report is due Thursday, with unemployment seen steady at 4.6 per cent, a five-year high. Markets put the chance of an RBA hike in November at about 30 per cent, rising to 52 per cent by December. The RBA publishes minutes from its most recent gathering on Tuesday, after four rate increases this year took rates to a 15-year high of 4.6 per cent.