Investing.com - The Australian dollar was higher against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday, after the release of positive Australian data on capital expenditure, while Wednesday's U.S. economic reports continued to weigh on the greenback.

AUD/USD hit 0.8610 during late Asian trade, the pair's highest since Tuesday; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.8609, gaining 0.71%.

The pair was likely to find support at 0.8477, Wednesday's low and a four-year low and resistance at 0.8705, the high of November 24.

In a report, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said that private capital expenditure rose 0.2% in the third quarter, beating expectations for a 1.7% fall. In the three months to June, private capital expenditure was revised to an increase of 1.6% from a previously estimated 1.1% rise.

A separate report showed that Australia's new home sales increased by 3.0% in October, after a flat reading the previous month.

Meanwhile, the greenback remained under pressure after data on Wednesday showed that U.S. initial jobless claims rose to the highest level since early September last week, while personal spending rose less than expected.

Durable goods orders rose in line with forecasts, but core durable goods orders fell unexpectedly.

Other reports showed that U.S. consumer sentiment was revised lower, manufacturing activity in the Chicago region slowed and data from the housing sector was mixed.

The Aussie was also higher against the euro, with EUR/AUD retreating 0.62% to 1.4540.

Trade volumes were expected to remain light on Thursday, with U.S. markets closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.