The Australian dollar is at a three-year low after some US Federal Reserve policy-makers said tapering should start soon, the minutes of their July meeting reveal.

At 0700 AEST on Thursday, the local unit was trading at 89.71 US cents, down from 90.36 cents on Wednesday.

The Aussie fell to its lowest point since August 2010 after the greenback was boosted by the revelation that “a few” members of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) “suggested that it might soon be time to slow somewhat the pace” of asset purchases, the minutes said.

But the timing of the Fed’s plan to taper its stimulus program remained unclear, as others in the group “emphasised the importance of being patient”.

They said more data gauging growth in the economy was needed before reducing the $US85 billion-a-month bond-buying program.

Westpac NZ senior market strategist Imre Speizer said the minutes confirmed that there wasn’t much disagreement among the members that tapering needed to start. What remained uncertain was the timing of the wind-down, he said.

“Some members wanted it to start now, some members wanted to exhibit a bit more patience and wait for further data to guide them,” Speizer said.

“What we’re left with at the end of the day is that tapering is going to happen, sometime in the next few months, but whether it’s September, October or December, we don’t know.

“The lasting reaction appears to be of the view that tapering is going to happen over the next few months, therefore, the market will push up the US dollar and push down the Australian dollar/US dollar.”

Speizer said there was a good chance the Aussie would continue lower on Thursday.

AAP