Investing.com - The Australian slipped lower against its U.S. counterpart on Monday, after the release of downbeat Australian data, while the New Zealand dollar gained some ground amid fresh geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and North Korea.
AUD/USD slipped 0.13% to 0.7957 after the Australian Bureau of Statistics said company operating profits declined by 4.5% in the second quarter, compared to expectations for a 4.0% fall.
Company operating profits for July were revised to a 5.8% increase from a previously estimated 6.0% climb.
Meanwhile, geopolitical threats resurfaced after North Korea said on Sunday that it had conducted a test of a hydrogen bomb intended to be mounted on an intercontinental ballistic missile.
Pyongyang called the test a complete success, with a greater yield than previous tests and no adverse impact on the environment.
The news prompted U.S. to warn of a "massive" military response if it or its allies were threatened.
U.S. President Donald Trump also threatened to cut off trade with any country doing business with North Korea.
NZD/USD rose 0.22% to trade at 0.7173, not far from last Thursday's nearly three-month low of 0.7132.
On the other hand, the greenback continued to suffer from Friday's disappointing data showing that the economy added 156,000 jobs in August from the prior month, while the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.4%.
Economists had expected 180,000 new jobs and an unemployment rate of 4.3%.
The report indicated that the Fed may be more reluctant to raise interest rates again before the end of the year.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.31% at 92.52 by 02:20 a.m. ET (06:20 GMT).