The Australian dollar fell during Asian trade yesterday after the minutes of the US Federal Reserve's December meeting showed some policymakers were pushing for its bond buying program to end as soon as this year.
The Fed minutes showed a disagreement among members as to the best time to halt the central bank's efforts to stimulate the world's biggest economy.
The US dollar immediately gained against the Aussie dollar as economists bet that the Fed might wind up its bond buying program, known as quantitative easing, sooner than expected. At the close, the dollar was trading at $US1.0443, down US0.41c.
"Risk sentiment was somewhat wrong-footed by the Fed's minutes, which were less dovish than expected," BNP Paribas said.
The focus now turns to US employment figures, due out last night, which will be key to setting the tone for the economic outlook early in the new year. Economists anticipate that about 150,000 jobs were added last month compared with 147,000 in November.