Australian dollar
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"AUD" redirects here. For other uses, see Aud.
| ISO 4217 Code | AUD |
| User(s) | Australia, Kiribati, Nauru, Tuvalu, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island |
| Inflation | 4% (Australia only) |
| Source | Reserve Bank of Australia, June 2006 |
| Pegged by | Tuvaluan dollar at par |
| Superunit | |
| 1000 | grand |
| Subunit | |
| 1/100 | cent |
| Symbol | $ or AUD |
| cent | ¢ |
| Coins | ¢5, ¢10, ¢20, ¢50 , $1, $2 |
| Banknotes | $5, $10, $20, $50, $100 |
| Central bank | Reserve Bank of Australia |
| Website | www.rba.gov.au |
| Mint | Royal Australian Mint |
| Website | www.ramint.gov.au |
The Australian dollar (currency code AUD) has been, since 1966, the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $. Alternatively A$ or $A, $AU or AU$ is used to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is sometimes affectionately called the "Aussie battler"—during a low period (relative to the U.S. dollar) around 2001 and 2002 the currency was sometimes locally called the "Pacific Peso". It is divided into 100 cents.
The Australian dollar is currently the sixth-most-traded currency in world foreign exchange markets (behind the U.S. dollar, the euro, the yen, the Pound sterling, and the Swiss franc), accounting for approximately 4–5% of worldwide foreign exchange transactions. The Australian dollar is popular with currency traders due to the relative lack of government intervention in the foreign exchange market, the general stability of the economy and government as well as the prevailing view that it offers diversification benefits in a portfolio containing the major world currencies (especially because of its greater exposure to Asian economies and the commodities cycle).
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[edit] History
The Australian dollar was introduced on 14 February 1966, not only replacing the Australian pound (long since distinct from the pound sterling), but also introducing a decimal system.
The Royal
In 1965 the Prime Minister at the time, Robert Menzies wished to name the currency "The Royal", and other names such as "the Austral", "The Oz", "The Boomer", "The Roo", "The Kanga", "The Emu", "The Digger", "The Kwid" and "Ming" (the nickname of Menzies) were also proposed. Due to Menzies' influence, the name "Royal" was settled upon, and trial designs were prepared and printed by the printing works of the Reserve Bank of Australia. The unusual choice of name for the currency proved unpopular, and it was later shelved in favour of "dollar".
On 14 February 1966 the Australian dollar was introduced at a rate of two dollars per pound, or ten shillings per dollar.
In 1967 the Australian dollar effectively left the sterling area for the first time. When sterling devalued in 1967 against the U.S. dollar, the new Australian dollar did not follow. It maintained its peg to the U.S. dollar at the same rate.
[edit] Coins
All coins portray Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse and are produced by the Royal Australian Mint.
The one and two-cent coins were discontinued in 1990–91 and withdrawn from circulation. Cash transactions are rounded to the nearest five cents, or rounded down at the option of the retailer. In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of decimal currency, the 2006 mint Proof and Uncirculated sets include 1 and 2 cent coins. As with most public changes to currency systems, there has been a great amount of seignorage of these discontinued coins, meaning the vast majority are never going to be worth a significant amount of money.
Australia has long issued commemorative 50 cent coins as a follow up to the commemorative crowns used prior to decimal currency. The first commemorative 50 cent coin was in 1970, commemorating Captain Cook's departure from England, followed in 1977 by a coin for Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee, the wedding of Charles and Diana in 1981, Commonwealth Games in 1982 and the Australian Bicentenary in 1988. Issues expanded into greater numbers in the 1990s and the 21st century, responding to collector demand.
Australia has also made special issues of 20 cent, 50 cent and $1 coins.
There are also many Australian five dollar coins of aluminium/bronze and bi-metal as well as many silver and gold bullion coins in higher denominations. These, like the U.S coins of higher denomination than 1 dollar or which are made of precious metals, are not normally used in payment but are still legal tender.
[edit] Banknotes
[edit] First series
The first paper issues of Australian dollars, issued in 1966, featured portraits of the following persons:
 $1 banknote front—Elizabeth II |
 $1 banknote back—Aboriginal art designed by David Malangi |
 $2 banknote front—John Macarthur |
 $2 banknote back—William Farrer |
 $5 banknote front—Joseph Banks |
 $5 banknote back—Caroline Chisholm |
 $10 banknote front—Francis Greenway |
 $10 banknote back—Henry Lawson |
 $20 banknote front—Charles Kingsford Smith |
 $20 banknote back—Lawrence Hargrave |
 $50 banknote front—Howard Florey |
 $50 banknote back—Ian Clunies Ross |
 $100 banknote front—Douglas Mawson |
 $100 banknote back—John Tebbutt |
The $5 note was not issued until 1967. The $1 (10/-,) $2 (£1,) $10 (£5,) and $20 (£10) had exact exchange rates with pounds, but the $5 (£2/10) did not, and so was introduced after the public had become familiar with decimal currency. The one dollar note was replaced by a coin in 1984, while the two dollar note was replaced by a coin in 1988. The $100 note was introduced in 1984, in response to inflation requiring a larger denomination for transactions.
[edit] Polymer series
In 1988, the Reserve Bank of Australia issued plastic, specifically polypropylene polymer banknotes (which were produced by Note Printing Australia), to commemorate the bicentenary of European settlement in Australia. These notes contained a transparent "window" with an optically variable image of Captain James Cook as a security feature. Australian banknotes were the first in the world to use such features.
Despite initial difficulties, the Reserve Bank saw potential in the issue of plastic banknotes and commenced preparations for an entirely new series made from polymer, commencing with the $5 note in 1992. In 1995, the design of the $5 note was updated to match the rest of the New Note Series, with additional slight changes in 1996. In 2001, a special commemorative $5 note was produced, but in 2002, the previous version's production commenced again.
In 2002, the design of all notes (except for the $5 note picturing the Queen) were slightly changed to include the names of the people pictured on them under the portraits, and swapping the order of the signatures of officials on the notes.
Today all Australian notes are made of polymer.
| Second series [1] | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image Front | Image Back | Value | Dimensions | Colour | Obverse | Reverse | Printed Date | Issued Date | Transparent Window |
| Original $51 |
130 × 65 mm | Pale mauve[1] | Queen Elizabeth II | Parliament House | 1992 | 7 July 1992 | Gum flower | ||
 |
 |
Recoloured $5 |
Violet/pink | Currently printing | 24 April 1995 | ||||
 |
 |
Federation $52 |
Henry Parkes | Catherine Helen Spence | 2001 | 1 January 2001 | Leaf shaped window and "5" | ||
 |
 |
$103 | 137 × 65 mm | Blue | Banjo Paterson | Dame Mary Gilmore | Currently printing | 1 November 1993 | Windmill |
 |
 |
$20 | 144 × 65 mm | Red | Mary Reibey | Reverend John Flynn | Currently printing | 31 October 1994 | Compass and "20" |
 |
 |
$50 | 151 × 65 mm | Yellow | David Unaipon | Edith Cowan | Currently printing | 4 October 1995 | Southern Cross and "50" |
 |
 |
$100 | 158 × 65 mm | Green | Dame Nellie Melba | Sir John Monash | Currently printing | 15 May 1996 | Lyrebird and "100" |
| These images are to scale at 0.7 pixels per millimetre, a standard for world banknotes. | |||||||||
[edit] Notes
- The colour faded with wear and tear
- Commemorating the Centenary of Federation
- This note features all the text from Banjo Paterson's most famous poem "The Man From Snowy River" in microprint on the front, and the text of Mary Gilmore's patriotic poem No Foe Shall Gather Our Harvest on the reverse.
[edit] Value of the Australian dollar
In 2001, the value of one Australian dollar went below 50 US cents for the first time. As of December 2006, the Australian dollar was worth 78 US cents.
In 1966 when the Australian dollar was introduced, the International gold standard still operated. The Australian dollar was at that time worth 980 milligrams of gold. As of December 2006 the Australian dollar was worth 38 milligrams of gold.[2]
[edit] Exchange rate policies
Australia maintained a peg to the British pound reflecting its historical ties as well as a view about the stability in value of the British pound. From 1946 to 1971 Australia maintained a peg to the U.S. dollar under the Bretton Woods system, but it was effectively pegged to sterling until 1967. With the breakdown of the Bretton Woods system in 1971, Australia converted the mostly-fixed peg to a moving peg against the U.S. dollar. In September 1974 Australia moved to a peg against a basket of currencies called the TWI (trade weighted index) in an effort to reduce fluctuations associated with its peg to the U.S. dollar. The peg to the TWI was changed to a moving peg in November 1976, causing the actual value of the peg to be periodically adjusted. In December 1983, the Australian Labor government led by Prime Minister Bob Hawke and Treasurer Paul Keating "floated" the Australian dollar. From that point, movements in the Australian dollar continued to reflect the strength of its terms of trade. For decades Australia's reliance upon commodity (mineral and farm) exports has seen the Australian dollar rally during global booms, and fall when mineral prices slumped or when domestic spending overshadowed its export earnings outlook. The currency's high volatility, currency exposure and interest swap has made the AUD one of the most traded currencies in the world, far in excess of the economy's importance (2% of global economic activity).
| Use Yahoo! Finance: | CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD |
| Use XE.com: | CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD |
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ (2000) Ian W. Pitt: Renniks Australian Coin and Banknote Values, 19th ed., Chippendale, N.S.W.: Renniks Publications, 168. ISBN 0958557446.
[edit] External links
- The Perth Mint is Australia's precious metals mint, making non circulating /collector coins in silver, gold, and platinum.
- Note Printing Australia is the printer of Australia's notes, and also inventor of the abovementioned polymer banknotes, and world exporter of this technology.
- Current VALUE of the Australian dollar (as measured by gold ounces) (source is Yahoo)
- Current VALUE of the Australian dollar (as measured by CPI) (source is RBA)
(Note that a higher CPI figure indicates a reduction of value for the Australian dollar.)
- Australian Dollar Market Summary on a daily and weekly basis.
- The Money Tracker site allows users to track Australian banknotes as they circulate around Australia.
| Preceded by: Australian pound Reason: decimalisation Ratio: 2 dollars = 1 pound |
Currency of Australia 1966 – |
Succeeded by: Current |
| Preceded by: New Guinea pound Reason: decimalisation Ratio: 2 dollars = 1 pound |
Currency of Papua New Guinea 1966 – 1975 |
Succeeded by: Papua New Guinean kina |
| Topics: Australian dollar | Reserve Bank of Australia | Royal Australian Mint |
| Coins: ¢1 | ¢2 | ¢5 | ¢10 | ¢20 |
| Banknotes: $1 |$2 |$5 | $10 | $20 | $50 | $100 |
| Historic: Pound sterling | Australian pound | ½d | 1d | 3d | 6d | 1/- | 2/- | 5/- | 10/- | £1 | £5 | £10 | £20 | £50 | £100 | £1000 |
