The Australian dollar has edged higher against its US counterpart, as the greenback drifted while investors waited on US inflation figures.

At 0630 AEDT on Friday, the local unit was worth 87.27 US cents, up slightly from 87.21 US cents on Thursday.

The Australian dollar rose past 78 US cents on Wednesday, boosted by a surprisingly strong consumer confidence indicator, and has remained above the mark since.

The Aussie dollar on Friday was also marginally higher against the Japanese yen and the euro.

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