Australian bonds gain after wages data disappoint investors

Australian government bonds gained Wednesday after Australian wage growth has come in well below expectations for the second straight month.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves inversely to its price, fell 6 basis points to 2.604 percent, the yield on the long-term 30-year note also slid 6 basis points to 3.370 percent and the yield on short-term 2-year declined 5-1/2 basis points to 1.795 percent by 02:20 GMT.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), hourly wage growth excluding bonuses grew by 0.48 percent in the September quarter, missing forecasts for a larger increase of 0.7 percent. Annual wage growth also came up short, rising by 2.01 percent, below the 2.2 percent level expected. It was marginally above the 1.94 percent level reported in the June quarter.

With wages growing by 0.5 percent over the quarter, that temporary boost likely masked what would have likely been a record-low level for wage growth. For a central bank expecting a gradual lift in wage pressures to help boost household consumption, GDP growth and inflation in the years ahead, this is a concerning result for the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), especially given how strong employment growth has been this year. Even with tightening labour market conditions, wage growth is failing to respond.

Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 index traded 0.29 percent higher at 5,962 by 02:20 GMT, while at 03:00GMT, the FxWirePro's Hourly AUD Strength Index remained slightly bearish at -96.93 (a reading above +75 indicates a bullish trend, while that below -75 a bearish trend). For more details, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex

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