Most Australian releases — RBA decisions, employment, CPI — come out during the Asian session, when overall FX liquidity is lower than in London or New York. That changes how AUD reacts.
Effects of releasing into thinner markets:
Initial moves can overshoot because fewer participants absorb orders.
Spreads widen more and for longer than on similar releases in London hours.
Retracements frequently come when London traders arrive.
Chinese data adds another layer: PMIs, trade and activity data are also released in Asian hours and can move AUD as much as domestic numbers.
Practical approaches:
Use the post-release high and low as the reference range for the rest of the Asian session.
Compare AUDUSD with AUDNZD to separate AUD-specific moves from broader USD moves.
Reassess positions at the London open, when liquidity and direction often change.
Do you trade AUD releases live in Asia, or wait for London?
AUD releases into Asia still catch me out when I size them like a London print. On the last employment number AUDUSD jumped about 28 pips in four minutes, then gave back 15 of them once London liquidity arrived.
I mark the spike high and low after the print as my Asian box and refuse to add until that box is broken with a close. Spreads stayed wide for nearly twenty minutes that morning, which made early stop placement expensive.
AUDNZD is the cross check I trust more than AUDUSD alone. When both move, I treat it as AUD specific; when only AUDUSD moves I assume a dollar impulse and stand down.
Chinese PMI weeks get the same rule set. Liquidity is thin enough that a modest miss can look like a trend until the European open resets the tape.
Do you trade the Asian reaction live, or only map the range and wait for London? I map first and only trade live on half size.
