The Australian dollar has fallen against its US counterpart after global risk appetite took a hit on news hedge funds have concerns about Deutsche Bank.

At 0710 AEST on Friday, the local unit was trading at 76.35 US cents, down from 76.64 cents on Thursday.

The currency fell after it was reported that about 10 hedge funds were reducing their exposure to Deutsche Bank, Bank of New Zealand currency strategist Jason Wong said.

He said the hedge funds’ move had caused investors to be concerned about Europe’s largest investment bank which has been under pressure after the US Justice Department asked it to pay a $14 billion fine to settle civil claims related to its residential mortgage-backed securities.

“The Aussie fell earlier this morning because of concerns about Deutsche Bank with some counterparties withdrawing cash from the bank which caused a risk-off move,” Wong said

“The likes of the Aussie and Kiwi dollar have fallen following that story from Bloomberg and we haven’t recovered since.”

AAP

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