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The Australian dollar (sign: $; code: AUD; also abbreviated A$ or sometimes AU$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; [2] [3] and also referred to as the dollar or Aussie dollar) is the official currency and legal tender of Australia, including all of its external territories, and three independent sovereign Pacific Island states: Kiribati, Nauru, and Tuvalu.
The notes of the Australian dollar were first issued by the Reserve Bank of Australia on 14 February 1966, when Australia changed to decimal currency and replaced the pound with the dollar. [1] This currency was a lot easier for calculating compared to the previous Australian pound worth 20 shillings or 240 pence.
When Australia was part of the fixed-exchange sterling area, the exchange rate of the Australian dollar was fixed to the pound sterling at a rate of A$1 = 8 U.K. shillings (A$2.50 = UK£1). In 1967, Australia effectively left the sterling area, when the pound sterling was devalued against the US dollar and the Australian dollar did not follow.
There is a market convention that rules the notation used to communicate the fixed and variable currencies in a quotation. For example, in a conversion from EUR to AUD, EUR is the fixed currency, AUD is the variable currency and the exchange rate indicates how many Australian dollars would be paid or received for 1 euro.
British currency became the official currency of the Australian colonies after 1825, with almost £100,000-worth of British coins being imported during 1824–25. The Holey dollar was no longer legal tender after 1829. The most notable Holey Dollar was the "Hannibal Head" a one of a kind coin that features the portrait of King Joseph I of Spain ...
The one-dollar coin was introduced in 1984, to replace the banknote of the same value. The two-dollar coin, also replacing a banknote, was introduced in 1988. They have content of 2% nickel, 6% aluminium and 92% copper. The two-dollar coin is smaller in diameter than the one-dollar coin, but the two-dollar is slightly thicker.
The Royal Australian Mint never issued Australian shillings or any other form of pre-decimal currency, since it began to produce Australian coinage two years after the ceasing of shilling production and only produced coins in preparation for the transition to decimal currency. [18] The old San Francisco Mint, built in 1874.
On 12 December 1983, Australia floated the Australian dollar, with the exchange rate reflecting the balance of payments and other market drivers. Immediately after 1945 Australia continued to be governed by the ALP, which adopted a policy of reconstruction based on the principles of "nationalisation and rationalisation". [ 22 ]