AFTER hitting a low of almost US60¢ in October, the $A has been climbing steadily since early March and reached close to US79¢ this week, its highest in almost eight months, before easing back to US78c on Thursday.
AMP Capital Investors chief economist Shane Oliver predicts the $A will reach US85¢ by the end of the year, according to The Australian Financial Review.
Dr Oliver says: "The forces that were pushing it up (to nearly US98c in July) are still in play, but they were interrupted in a rather big way by the global financial crisis. I think it's a matter of time before we reach parity."
But RBC Capital Markets senior economist Su-Lin Ong is more cautious, according to The Australian Financial Review.
While admitting there was "every chance" the currency could reach US80¢, Ms Ong says: "You have got a structural recession in the United States, the UK [United Kingdom] and Japan, so it's very hard to see how you can come out of it quickly."
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