AUD/USD clings to modest gains, comfortably above 0.6800 handle

The AUD/USD pair regained some positive traction on Wednesday and is currently placed near session tops, around the 0.6820 region.

The pair managed to attract some buying near 100-day SMA, around the 0.6800 round-figure mark and has now recovered a part of the previous session's slide to over one-week lows, despite persistent US-China trade uncertainties.

Bulls shrug off a combination of negative factors

The US-China trade talks showed little progress and conflicting reports on Tuesday further added to the uncertainty ahead of the December 15 deadline for the imposition of additional tariffs on around $156 billion worth Chinese products.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the US President Donald Trump is yet to decide on the December 15 tariffs. The report further added that negotiators are laying the groundwork for a preliminary deal to wind back their trade war.

Meanwhile, the China-proxy Australian dollar seemed rather unaffected and also shrugged off the disappointing release of the Westpac Consumer Sentiment index, which dropped 1.9% in December from +4.5% reported in the previous month.

Even a modest pickup in the US dollar demand, supported by an uptick in the US Treasury bond yields, did little to hinder the intraday positive move, albeit further gains are likely to remain limited ahead of the latest FOMC policy decision.

Technical levels to watch