AUD/USD capitalizes on positive US-China trade headlines, trades near mid-0.67s

The AUD/USD pair closed the day virtually unchanged at 0.6730 on Wednesday and stayed relatively quiet during the Asian trading hours despite the disappointing consumer sentiment data from Australia. With the latest headlines surrounding the United States (US)-China trade conflict bringing back optimism to markets, the pair gained traction and rose toward the 0.6750 area. As of writing, the pair was up 0.25% on the day at 0.6745.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Westpac Consumer Confidence released by the Faculty of Economics and Commerce Melbourne Institute in Australia slumped to -5.5% in October from -1.7% in September.

The market focus stays on trade headlines

On the other hand, citing a Chinese official familiar with talks, Bloomberg reported that China was open to making a partial trade deal with the United States despite Trump administration's decision to blacklist numerous Chinese technology firms. Additionally, according to the Financial Times, China has offered to buy $10 million worth of extra soybeans from the US with an aim to ease the trade war. Both of these headlines allowed the market sentiment to recover on Wednesday and helped trade-sensitive antipodeans find demand.

Later in the day, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will be releasing the minutes of its September meeting, at which the Committee decided to cut the policy rate by 25 basis points. Ahead of this critical event, the US Dollar Index continues to move sideways near the 99 handle, allowing the trade headlines to dominate the market action.

Technical levels to consider