Investing.com - The Australian and New Zealand dollars moved higher againts their U.S. counterpart on Thursday, after the release of mixed Australian jobs data, as the greenback pared some of the broad gains posted following comments by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.
AUD/USD rose 0.27% to 0.7527, off the previous session’s two-month high of 0.7570.
Earlier Thursday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said the number of employed people rose by 13,500 in December, beating expectations for an increase of 10,000.
The number of employed people climbed 37,100 in November, down from a previously estimated gain of 39,100.
However, the report also showed that Australia’s unemployment rate ticked up to 5.8% in December from 5.7% in November. Analysts had expected an unchanged reading in December.
NZD/USD gained 0.29% to trade at 0.7144.
Meanwhile, the greenback lost some steam after rallying late Wednesday, when Fed Chair Janet Yellen said interest rates could be raised quickly this year.
Speaking at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, Ms. Yellen said that "waiting too long to begin moving toward the neutral rate could risk a nasty surprise down the road - either too much inflation, financial instability, or both."
The comments came after San Francisco Fed President John Williams on Tuesday called for gradual U.S. interest-rate hikes over the next few years.
Fed Governor Lael Brainard said the Fed might hike rates more aggressively if deficit spending under the Trump administration fueled inflation.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was little changed at 101.28.