SYDNEY (FWN) - The Australian dollar was higher in late afternoon trade after the better-than-expected September retail sales data, dealers said. The Australian unit traded between a high of 0.5058 usd and a low of 0.5022 during the day. Australian retail sales in September fell a seasonally adjusted 0.1 pct from August to 13.636 bln aud, but were up 6.5 pct year-on-year, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said. The median market expectation for September was for a month-on-month fall of 0.5 pct, with expectations ranging from a fall of 1.5 pct to a rise of 0.2 pct. IBJ Australia Bank foreign exchange trader Scott Lewis said the local unit did "get a bit of a kick from the retail sales data. But overall, there was some short covering by short-term players in the market." He said the Australian dollar may meet resistance from here to 0.5070 usd and support at 0.5000-0.5020.