SYDNEY, April 13 Reuters The Australian and New Zealand dollars drifted lower on Tuesday as caution in global markets outweighed upbeat economic news and a solid sale of new Aussie government bonds.
The Aussie slipped to 0.7597, as speculators looked to test support around 0.7595. The currency has now spent three weeks rattling around in a 0.75337676 range and a break lower would likely unleash a large move.
The kiwi dollar eased to 0.7007 and was nearing support at 0.6998. The kiwi has also been trapped between 0.6946 and 0.7070 for three weeks or so.
The U.S. dollar found support from wagers that U.S. consumer price data due later would show a big increase in headline inflation and push Treasury yields higher.
The Aussie found only fleeting support from Chinese trade data showing surprisingly strong 38.1 growth in imports, a positive for Australia given China is the countrys biggest export market.
Domestic data also remained upbeat with NABs influential business survey finding the strongest conditions on record in March, with sales, profits and employment all surging.
A separate survey from ANZ showed its consumer confidence index surged 5.9 last week to its highest since late 2019.
There was evidence of robust demand for Australian debt as a syndicated sale of A14 billion 10.64 billion in new 2032 bonds drew bids worth A48 billion.
Yields on current 10year bonds edged up 2 basis points to 1.75, in line with U.S. Treasuries, but remained short of last weeks…