AUD/JPY slides towards 91.00 on downbeat Australia Q4 GDP

• AUD/JPY takes offers to add to previous pullback from one-week high after upbeat Aussie GDP.
• Australia Q4 GDP eased to 0.5% QoQ versus 0.8% expected and 0.6% prior.
• Market sentiment remains depressed as yields regain upside momentum after sluggish end to February.
• China PMIs, BoJ talks and risk catalysts eyed for clear directions.

AUD/JPY drops to 91.36 while refreshing the intraday low on lower-than-expected Aussie economic growth during early Wednesday. In doing so, the risk-barometer pair also takes clues from the market’s sour sentiment amid hopes of higher rates and worsening inflation fears. With this, the cross-currency pair also pays little heed to the dovish bias surrounding the Bank of Japan (BoJ), as signalled by the incoming policymakers’ latest speeches.

That said, Australia’s fourth-quarter (Q4) Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures came in lower than expected 0.8% and 0.6% prior readings while flashing 0.5% quarterly growth. The yearly GDP growth, however, matches 2.7% market consensus, down from 5.9% prior.

Also read: Breaking: Aussie data dump crashes AUD/USD

Earlier in the day, Australia’s S&P Global Manufacturing PMI for February improved to 50.5 versus 50.1 analysts’ expectations.

Apart from the downbeat Aussie GDP, market’s sour sentiment also weighed on the AUD/JPY pair. The same contradicts the dovish BoJ talks.

Risk profile remains weak during early Wednesday as the all-important March month begins, which comprises Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell’s testimony and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) monetary policy meeting.

Technical analysis

A daily closing below the six-week-old ascending support line, now resistance around 92.00, keeps AUD/JPY bears hopeful of probing the previous monthly low surrounding 90.90.