The Australian dollar has dropped more than three quarters of a cent against a US dollar that has surged on positive economic data.

The greenback jumped against a basket of major currencies on surprisingly strong US private sector jobs figures and data showing an above-expectation increase in personal income, pushing the Aussie dollar back below 74 US cents and wiping out its gains of the past three days.

At 0700 AEDT on Thursday, the local unit was trading at 73.91 US cents, down from 74.74 cents on Wednesday.

“There’s no question that (US) dollar bulls remain in control and insist on driving the greenback higher,” BK Asset Management’s Kathy Kien said.

“There is still the risk of profit taking, but the path of least resistance for the greenback remains higher.”

The local currency is also lower against the euro, the pound and the NZ dollar, but has crept higher against the yen.

AAP

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