2013.04.1502:50:13UTC+00Aussie Dollar falls as China data disappoint

The Australian dollar surrenders versus the U.S. dollar Monday after weaker-than-expected economic data from China, Australia’s biggest trading partner.

The Australian dollar slumped to $1.0442, down from $1.0516 just before China released the data. The Aussie had purchased $1.0501 late Friday in North America.

China’s gross domestic product for the January-March quarter boosted 7.7% from a year earlier, weakening from growth of 7.9% in the fourth quarter and missing projections for 8% growth in separate surveys from Reuters and Dow Jones Newswires.

Industrial production for March rose 8.9% from the year-ago period, with the result well below the Dow Jones Newswires forecast for a 10% gain. Production also slowed from a 9.9% average rise for the January-February period, which China’s statistics bureau reports in one figure.

After the reports of slower activity, Australian stocks decline to session lows, pulling the S&P/ASX 200 down 1.1%.

The Aussie had edged higher versus the dollar earlier Monday after Australia’s statistics agency announced the number of new home loans in February increased by a seasonally adjusted 2%, higher than market expectations for an increase of 1.5%.

Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar lost more ground versus Japan’s currency after the China data. The greenback purchased 98.27 yen, down from ¥98.46 ahead of the data and lesser than ¥98.92 in Friday’s North American session.

The dollar backed away from four-year highs reached last week against the yen after the U.S. Treasury Department on Friday warned Japan “to refrain from competitive devaluation and targeting its exchange rate for competitive purposes.”

The yen had dropped sharply versus the dollar and other currencies since the Bank of Japan earlier this month revealed an aggressive monetary-easing method in an effort to defeat years of deflation.

The ICE dollar index, a measure of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, gave up to 82.286, down from 82.295 late Friday.

The WSJ Dollar Index, a rival gauge that uses a slightly bigger basket, backslide to 73.47 from 73.68.

The British pound dropped to $1.5316 from $1.5348 late Friday, while the euro purchased $1.3074, down from $1.3103.