Aussie gains after weak China prices data stokes easing views

The Australian dollar gained after data sets that showed weak prices in China and moderate housing and business conditions at home that jibe with the central bank's view of the economy and hopes for Beijing to ease monetary policy further.

AUD/USD traded at 0.7820 up 0.22%, while USD/JPY changed hands at 118.45, down 0.16%.

China's January CPI rose 0.8%, below the 1.0% expected year-on-year, while PPI data eased 4.3%, compared to a fall of 3.8% year-on-year expected, the steepest drop since October 2009.

In Australia, the NAB's business confidence and business conditions for January showed plus-2 for conditions, unchanged from December, while confidence came in at plus-3, from plus-2 in December.

The house price index for the fourth quarter rose 1.9% quarter-on-quarter. The data was seen as moderate and in line with the Reserve Bank lowering the cash rate last week to a record low 2.25%. The RBA continues to watch for corrections in housing imbalances and work with regulators to introduce more measure if and when needed.

Overnight, the dollar edged lower against the other major currencies in quiet on Monday, but losses were expected to remain limited as Friday's strong U.S. jobs data continued to support the greenback.

The dollar remained supported after the Labor Department reported on Friday that the U.S. economy added 257,000 jobs in January, far more than the 234,000 forecast by economists. December’s figure was revised to 329,000 from a previously reported 252,000.

The unemployment rate ticked up to 5.7% last month from December’s 5.6% hourly earnings and the participation rate both saw increases in January.

The upbeat jobs report was seen as strong enough to indicate that the Fed will remain on track to start raising rates from near zero levels as early as June.