On Wednesday the Aussie held weaker after data out of China pointed to subdued economic pressures, while the greenback was lower against the yen and euro amid mounting confidence the Fed will delay raising interest rates.
Data out of China signaled consumer prices added 1.6% in September, a slower pace than the 1.8% gain seen, while producer prices fell 5.9 percent from a year ago, in line with the expectations and the same rate of decline as in August, which was the biggest drop since the depths of the global financial crisis in 2009.
AUD/USD hit 0.7218, down 0.37%, before recovering to 0.7231, with the currency's value closely linked to demand for commodities from China.
In early Asia, the Westpac consumer sentiment survey rose 4.2% to 97.8, compared to an expected 3.0% gain, as a change in government leadership aided upbeat views.
In Japan, the corporate goods prices index fell 3.9%, matching expectations.
The Nikkei Stock Average fell 1.89% midday on track to close lower for the second straight session, while the Shanghai Composite Index was last down 0.85%.
Elsewhere in the currency trading, the dollar was lower aganst the yen and the euro.
The greenback was almost unchanged at ¥119.73, compared with ¥119.74 late Tuesday in New York.
The U.S. currency was weaker against the euro, which climbed to $1.1404 midday from $1.1378 late Tuesday.
Investors are now waiting for U.S. retail sales data for September later in the day for fresh trading cues.
But “the data alone certainly can’t determine the Fed’s rate policy,” said Kumiko Ishikawa, analyst at Gaitame.Com Research Institute.
