AUD/USD looks to close with modest gains above 0.71
- AUD/USD struggles to find direction on Thursday.
- US Dollar Index erases Wednesday's losses.
- Coming up: AiG Performance of Construction Index.
After falling sharply amid the RBA's cautious tone on Tuesday and recovering all of its losses on Wednesday on the back of strong data from China and higher risk appetite, the AUD/USD pair struggled to make a decisive move in either direction today. Following a drop to the 0.71 area earlier in the session, the pair rose to 0.7120, where it was up 0.08% on a daily basis.
The mixed market sentiment on Thursday didn't provide a directional clue to the pair either. Although U.S. President Trump's comments about the U.S. - China trade talks revived hopes of the trade conflict coming to an end soon, reports of key issues remaining in negotiations forced investors to remain cautiously optimistic. "The U.S. and China are making progress toward a trade deal, but some sticking points remain," CNBC reported citing an administration official.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar Index turned north after finding support near 97 yesterday and made it difficult for the pair to gain traction. Despite a lack of high-tier macroeconomic data releases from the U.S., the greenback took advantage of the relatively risk-averse environment and outperformed its rivals.
In the early trading hours of the Asian session, the AiG Performance of Construction Index from Australia will be looked upon for fresh impetus ahead of Friday's labour market data from the United States.
Technical levels to consider