archiveReserve Bank of Australia

The antipodean currencies such as the Australia and the New Zealand dollars strengthened against their major currencies in the Asian session on Friday as Asian stock markets traded higher, boosted by the surge in semiconductor and AI stocks amid reports that the $28 billion SK Hynix IPO in the U.S. was heavily oversubscribed. Speculation that the escalation of hostilities between the U.S. and Iran will be limited is also aiding market sentiment. Traders remain optimistic that a full-blown war can be avoided in the Middle East after US President Donald...

shana espinoza/Shutterstock Suitcases of forged banknotes aren't just the stuff of heist movies and spy novels. Banks and governments around the globe are constantly working to prevent fraudsters from introducing fake cash into circulation – and some countries are more successful in their efforts than others. Nations typically use parts per million (ppm), a metric borrowed from chemistry, to monitor counterfeit currency. They give a score by measuring the number of fake banknotes found in circulation for every one million genuine notes. Most nations aim to stay below the 15 ppm mark, though quite a few have seen...