Australian dollar higher

The Australian dollar lifted on a mixed bag of data out of the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

At 1128 AEDT, before the release of the data, the local currency was trading at 88.84 US cents.

By 1133 AEDT, the dollar had lifted to 89.05 US cents.

ABS data showed retail sales beat expectations in November, while building approvals fell more than expected in the same period.