Key Highlights

  • On 13 October, A$1 bought NZ$1.2453, ₹66.29 and ₩934.86.
  • The same table showed 0.6961 US dollars and a trade-weighted index of 64.7.
  • The conversions are simple illustrations of the published rates, and actual amounts in any transaction depend on fees and the provider’s rate.

The US dollar rate dominates the headlines, but the RBA's daily exchange rate table also tracks the Australian dollar against the New Zealand dollar, the Indian rupee, the South Korean won and several other currencies, and those figures say something too.

Ask most people what the Australian dollar is worth and they will answer in US cents. On 13 October 2026, that answer was 69.6 cents, with the Reserve Bank of Australia's 4.00 pm figures showing A$1 buying US$0.6961. Yet the same table lists rates against a range of other currencies that rarely make the evening news.

This explainer looks at three of the less-watched rates, the New Zealand dollar, Indian rupee and South Korean won, along with a handful of others in the RBA's table. It explains how to read the figures, works through some simple conversions, and sets them alongside the broader measure the RBA uses to track the dollar's overall strength.

Reading the RBA's table

The RBA quotes exchange rates as units of foreign currency per A$1. A higher number means the Australian dollar buys more of that currency; a lower number means it buys less. The figures are a snapshot taken at 4.00 pm on a given day, so they reflect conditions at that moment rather than a weekly average.

At 4.00 pm on 13 October 2026, the RBA's table showed:

  • New Zealand dollar: 1.2453
  • Indian rupee: 66.29
  • South Korean won: 934.86
  • Singapore dollar: 0.8914
  • Chinese renminbi: 4.6610
  • Japanese yen: 110.17
  • Euro: 0.6231
  • UK pound: 0.5267
  • US dollar: 0.6961

The trade-weighted index (TWI), which measures the Australian dollar against a basket of trading partners' currencies, stood at 64.7.

Across the Tasman

The New Zealand dollar rate of 1.2453 means A$1 bought about NZ$1.25. As a simple illustration of the arithmetic, A$100 converted at that rate would equal NZ$124.53, before any fees or margins charged by a bank or money changer. Flipping the calculation, NZ$1 was worth about A$0.80.

Because Australia and New Zealand are close neighbours with deep economic links, this rate is relevant to a wide range of businesses and travellers. It also illustrates a broader point: the Australian dollar's value is not just a story about the US dollar. The Australian dollar can rise against one currency and fall against another on the same day.

The rupee and the won

The Indian rupee rate of 66.29 means A$1 bought 66.29 rupees. Using the same illustrative arithmetic, A$100 would equal ₹6,629, again before any transaction costs. Going the other way, ₹100 was worth about A$1.51.

The South Korean won rate of 934.86 shows how differently currencies are denominated. A$1 bought almost 935 won, so A$100 would equal ₩93,486. Put the other way, ₩1,000 was worth about A$1.07.

These large numbers do not mean the won is "weak" or the rupee "cheap" in any meaningful sense. They reflect the units each currency uses. What matters for trade and travel is how the rates change over time, not the size of the number itself.

The other Asian currencies in the table follow the same logic. At 0.8914, A$1 bought about 89 Singapore cents, or put another way S$1 was worth about A$1.12. At 4.6610, A$1 bought about 4.66 Chinese renminbi. At 110.17, A$1 bought about 110 Japanese yen, so ¥100 was worth about A$0.91. Further afield, A$1 bought 0.6231 euros and 0.5267 UK pounds, meaning €1 was worth about A$1.60 and £1 about A$1.90.

Why the smaller rates add up

Each of these bilateral rates matters to someone: an importer buying goods from a particular country, a family sending money overseas, a student paying fees, or a tourist planning a trip. Collectively, they also feed into the TWI, which is the RBA's broader gauge of the currency's strength. Because the TWI is weighted by trade, movements against a range of currencies, not just the US dollar, shape the overall reading.

The RBA's August 2026 Statement on Monetary Policy (SMP), with forecasts finalised on 5 August and therefore before the September rate rise, assumed a TWI of 66.1 for the June quarter of 2026 and 65.3 from December 2026 onwards. The 13 October reading of 64.7 was 0.6 points below that later assumption.

Over the course of 2026, the dollar had firmed by the time of the Board's September meeting. The minutes of the Monetary Policy Board's 28–29 September meeting said the Australian dollar was about 5% higher since the start of the year on a trade-weighted basis, though it had depreciated slightly since the previous meeting. Assistant Governor (Financial Markets) Christopher Kent made the same point about the trade-weighted gain in August.

For the RBA itself, exchange rates matter mainly because of their effect on import prices and, through those, on inflation. Headline CPI was 4.0% over the year to August 2026, according to the monthly CPI, while underlying inflation, measured by the trimmed mean, was 3.6% over the year to the June quarter. The Board lifted the cash rate target by 25 basis points to 4.60% at its September meeting.

Governor Michele Bullock cautioned against expecting quick effects: "The exchange rate channel takes a while to feed through." And RBA staff judged that the recent surprise in underlying inflation more likely reflected domestic capacity pressures than cost pass-through from the Middle East conflict, which suggests currency movements are only one part of the inflation story.

The bottom line

The RBA's daily exchange rate table offers a wider view of the Australian dollar than the US dollar rate alone. On 13 October, A$1 bought NZ$1.2453, ₹66.29 and ₩934.86, alongside 0.6961 US dollars, with the TWI at 64.7. The conversions above are simple illustrations of the published rates; actual amounts received in any transaction will depend on fees and the rate offered by the provider.

Exchange rates move constantly, and the 13 October figures are a single snapshot. The next scheduled RBA milestones are the September CPI release on 28 October and the cash rate decision at 2.30 pm on 3 November.

Currency quotations in this article refer to the stated 13 October observation period, rather than real-time exchange rates.