The Australian dollar climbed against most major currencies on Thursday after markets absorbed the central banks latest monetary policy decision.

In a statement released early Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia said it had decided to leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged, noting that it needs more information to ensure inflation is steadily moving toward the 2.5% target.

In the press conference following the meeting, Governor Michele Bullock said it was appropriate to adopt a cautious and gradual approach to monetary easing, but added that the bank could foresee further rate cuts if inflation slows as expected.

The decision came as a surprise, as markets had largely priced in a rate cut, prompting the Australian dollar to recover after losing nearly 1% on Monday.

As of 20:48 GMT, the Australian dollar rose 0.8% against the US dollar to 0.6588.

Canadian Dollar

The Canadian dollar also edged higher, rising 0.1% versus the greenback to 0.7316 by 20:48 GMT.

US Dollar

The US dollar index climbed 0.1% to 97.6 points by 19:40 GMT, after hitting a high of 97.9 and a low of 97.2 during the session.

President Trump announced Wednesday evening that a 50% tariff on imported copper would take effect on August 1.

He also imposed a 50% tariff on imports from Brazil, partially in response to the trial of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro for his alleged role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2022 election.

Trump added that the decision was also due to what he described as a very unfair trade relationship with Brazil, calling it far from reciprocal treatment.

For his part, Brazilian President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva said his country would respond to the USs 50% tariffs in line with the principles of reciprocal economic treatment.

Government data released today showed that initial jobless claims in the US fell by 5,000 to 227,000 in the week ending July 5, while analysts had expected an increase to 235,000.