AUD/USD Current price: 0.6616

• Positive Australian employment data kept the Aussie afloat throughout the day.
• Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Michele Bullock is scheduled to testify before Congress.
• AUD/USD is holding close to its weekly high, but a continuation of the uptrend is yet to be confirmed.

The AUD/USD pair is trading near its weekly high of 0.6642 after hitting a low of 0.6567 earlier in the day. The Aussie rose during Asian trading hours following the release of Australia’s monthly employment report, which showed that the country added 58,200 new jobs in July, much more than the 20,000 expected. In addition, the report showed 60,500 new full-time jobs and 2,300 fewer part-time jobs. On the negative side, the unemployment rate rose to 4.2%, while an unchanged 4.1% was expected.

In addition, consumer inflation expectations rose to 4.5% in August from 4.3% the previous month. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is in no hurry to cut interest rates and will likely be among the last to abandon its restrictive monetary policy. Market participants know this and pay little attention to the discouraging news.

The firm tone of global equities kept the pair in positive territory throughout the day, even as demand for the US dollar increased following the release of positive American data. However, the same numbers continued to push stocks higher as better-than-expected retail sales and encouraging jobs figures cooled worries about a potential recession in the world’s largest economy. While equities rose, the downside for AUD/USD remained limited.

The upcoming Asian session will feature a public appearance by RBA Governor Michele Bullock. Bullock is scheduled to testify before the House Standing Committee on Economic Affairs alongside other policymakers. Her words will be closely watched in search of clues about the future of monetary policy. Later in the day, the US will release the preliminary estimate of the Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index and consumer inflation expectations for August for the same month.

Short-term technical outlook for AUD/USD

From a technical perspective, the AUD/USD pair is poised to extend its gains. On the daily chart, technical indicators remain in positive territory, although they lack directional momentum. At the same time, the pair encountered buyers around a declining 20 Simple Moving Average (SMA), which maintains its bearish bias below the flat 100 and 200 SMAs. However, the pair also recovered above the longer moving averages, limiting the downside risk.

The 4-hour chart offers a short-term neutral stance. The pair is holding above a flat 20 SMA, but a directionless 200 SMA at around 0.6640 is rejecting advances made since the start of the week. Technical indicators turned south in the meantime but are holding above their midlines. Bearish pressure could increase if AUD/USD continues its downtrend below 0.6570, a strong static support level.

Support Levels: 0.6600 0.6570 0.6530

Resistance Levels: 0.6640 0.6675 0.6710