$A uninspired by local inflation figures
The Australian dollar's fate remains in the hands of the US dollar after local inflation figures failed to inspire the currency.
At 1200 AEDT on Wednesday, the local currency was trading at 87.76 US cents, down from 88.18 cents on Tuesday.
The Australian dollar was knocked from its perch above 88 US cents overnight on the back of greenback strength.
The move was disappointing, given the Australian dollar should have been supported by encouraging Chinese data on Tuesday and an improvement in global equities, Westpac senior currency strategist Sean Callow said.
He said inflation figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday, which were largely in line with market expectations, failed to have a lasting impact on the Aussie dollar.
"We fell as far as 87.46 US cents and then came back up again," Mr Callow said.
The focus would now turn to a speech by Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens as well as Chinese economic data on Thursday, he said.
Meanwhile, Australian bond futures prices were lower.
The December 2014 10-year bond futures contract was trading at 96.730 (implying a yield of 3.270 per cent), down from 96.785 (3.215 per cent) on Tuesday.
The December 2014 three-year bond futures contract was at 97.440 (2.560 per cent), down from 97.490 (2.510 per cent).
