Australian Dollar Advances Amid China's Liquidity Support

The Australian dollar climbed against its major counterparts in the European session on Friday, as the Chinese central bank injected liquidity into the banking system amid fears of a contagion from a possible default of property developer China Evergrande Group.

The PBOC pumped 100 billion yuan through reverse repo operations and short-term liquidity support.

The move was intended to contain the debt crisis of Evergrande from spreading over into the broader Chinese property sector.

Investors await the Fed meeting due next week for more clues on the timeline for paring back bond purchases.

Strong U.S. retail sales data released overnight fueled hopes that the Fed would begin scaling back its stimulus program in the coming months.

The aussie climbed to 3-day highs of 80.51 against the yen and 1.0338 against the kiwi, off its early lows of 79.73 and 1.0296, respectively. The next possible resistance for the aussie is seen around 84.00 against the yen and 1.05 against the kiwi.

The aussie edged higher to 0.7322 against the greenback, 1.6090 against the euro and 0.9256 against the loonie, following its prior lows of 0.7281, 1.6151 and 0.9234, respectively. On the upside, 0.75, 1.58 and 0.94 are likely seen as its next resistance levels against the greenback, the euro and the loonie, respectively.

Looking ahead, the University of Michigan's preliminary U.S. consumer sentiment index for September will be featured in the New York session.