Australian dollar drops under 65 cents as pandemic fears move markets

In short

1. The AUD/USD fell below 65 cents as soon as markets opened Monday morning
2. It's the first time the Australian dollar has gone under 65 cents since the GFC
3. It's a big week for the Australian dollar with the RBA meeting tomorrow

The Australian dollar was hammered last week, hitting an 11 year low but holding above 65 cents.

As soon as foreign exchange markets opened this morning, that trend continued as the local currency fell below 65 cents for the first time in over  a decade.

The AUD/USD has now fallen more than 5 cents in the first 2 months of 2020. The coronavirus outbreak has had a negative impact on the Australian dollar as markets around the globe scramble to work out its impact on the world economy.

This week is a busy one for financial markets. Tomorrow, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) meets to decide on interest rates. There is a chance that they may cut interest rates in response to the outbreak. If the do, most market participants expect the Aussie dollar to fall further. Australia will also get its GDP numbers on Wednesday, Trade Balance data on Thursday followed by Retail Sales numbers on Friday.