AUD/USD: what to know
The AUD/USD rate shows how much USD you get for 1 AUD. Right now, 1 AUD buys 0.7172 USD at the mid-market rate. In the other direction, 1 USD is worth 1.3943 AUD.
In the short term AUD is driven mainly by commodity prices and Chinese demand, while USD responds to Fed policy, US growth and global risk appetite.
The Australian Dollar (AUD) is issued by Reserve Bank of Australia. Australia pioneered polymer banknotes in 1988 — more durable and harder to counterfeit. The US Dollar (USD) is issued by Federal Reserve (Fed). Most of the world’s central-bank reserves are held in US dollars.
Over the past 12 months the AUD/USD rate has ranged between 0.6445 and 0.7257 — a change of +7.40% versus a year ago.
Use this mid-market figure as your benchmark: compare it with the rate your bank or broker quotes, and the difference is the margin you would pay.