AUD/USD flat below 0.7375 on a thin trading session

AUD/USD consolidates gains below 0.7400 in a thin market session.
US FOMC minutes hurt demand for USD.
Westpac's analysts see the Aussie breaking past 0.7400 next week.

Guillermo Alcala FXStreet

The Australian dollar has been practically flat at 0.7365 area on a quiet session with the US celebrating Thanksgiving day. The pair consolidates gains near three-month highs with upside attempts capped below 0.7375.

US dollar weakened after the release of the FOMC minutes

Greenback demand was hurt on Wednesday following the release of the Federal Reserve last meeting’s minutes, with the bank hinting at further monetary stimulus actions on December’s meeting to support recovery from the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The US dollar dropped to a fresh 12-week low against a basket of the most traded currencies shortly after the release, before picking up over Thursday’s European and US trading sessions.

The Australian dollar, however, has failed to capitalize on USD’s weakness and has remained practically unchanged within a tight range between 0.7350 and the mentioned 0.7375.

AUD/USD set to break beyond 0.7414 next week - Westpac

From a wider perspective, the FX Analysis Team at Westpac expects the pair to resume its uptrend next week: “Commodities continue to lend support, with our daily measure of Australia’s commodity export prices edging up to 7-year highs, with iron ore above $125/tonne (…) A somewhat fragile USD in the week ahead should help AUD/USD take out 0.7414 resistance, with dips perhaps limited to the mid-0.72 area. Our year-end target remains 0.7500.”

Technical levels to watch

AUD/USD

Overview
Today last price	0.7364
Today Daily Change	-0.0004
Today Daily Change %	-0.05
Today daily open	0.7368

Trends
Daily SMA20	0.7243
Daily SMA50	0.7181
Daily SMA100	0.7179
Daily SMA200	0.685

Levels
Previous Daily High	0.7374
Previous Daily Low	0.7324
Previous Weekly High	0.734
Previous Weekly Low	0.7254
Previous Monthly High	0.7244
Previous Monthly Low	0.7002
Daily Fibonacci 38.2%	0.7355
Daily Fibonacci 61.8%	0.7343
Daily Pivot Point S1	0.7337
Daily Pivot Point S2	0.7306
Daily Pivot Point S3	0.7288
Daily Pivot Point R1	0.7387
Daily Pivot Point R2	0.7405
Daily Pivot Point R3	0.7436

Author

Guillermo Alcala

FXStreet

Graduated in Communication Sciences at the Universidad del Pais Vasco and Universiteit van Amsterdam, Guillermo has been working as financial news editor and copywriter in diverse Forex-related firms, like FXStreet and Kantox.

AUD/USD climbs toward 0.7000 after strong China data dump

AUD/USD attracts follow-through buyers for the second straight day on Monday, extending last week's recovery toward 0.7000 in Monday's Asian trading. Strong Chniese Q3 GDP and activity data for September strengthen the pair's advance, following RBA Assistant Governor Chris Kent's hawkish remarks.

USD/JPY struggles near 158.00 amid hawkish BoJ, subdued USD

USD/JPY remains defensive near 158.00 in the Asian session on Monday, as the US Dollar remains depressed near a two-week low amid the recent decline in US bond yields. Furthermore, looming intervention risks underpin the Japanese Yen and weigh on the pair amid BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda's hawkish remarks. However, Fed rate-hike bets and geopolitical uncertainties could limit USD losses and the major.

Gold holds firm below $4,200 on falling US yields

Gold holds gains but remains below the $4,200 mark in the European session on Monday. US Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s unwillingness to provide any cues on further policy moves led to a reduction in odds for policy tightening later this month. Moreover, the recent sharp retracement slide in US government bond yields from multi-year highs, acts as a tailwind for the non-yielding bullion.

Cardano risks 15% downside as retail demand, bullish momentum wane

Cardano (ADA) is trading above $0.2200 at press time on Monday, holding steady after a 12% decline the previous week. The altcoin is losing retail interest as the notional value of active ADA futures positions declines. The technical outlook for ADA suggests a downside bias following the bearish breakout below a near-term support trendline last week.

What to expect in the week ahead

Investors are still digesting last week’s price action as we start a new week. US stocks sold off sharply, with the Swiss and UK indices attracting inflows as tech sold off. Sovereign bonds, particularly Treasuries, rallied and acted as a safe haven as the AI trade suffered another bout of volatility.

Everyone's dumping Gold after hot US inflation. Here's why $4,100 could be a floor, not a cliff

Gold (XAU/USD) is recovering from a sharp sell-off triggered by hotter-than-expected United States (US) inflation data released on Wednesday. The precious metal briefly plunged toward $4,073 as investors increased their bets on further Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate hikes before recovering as US Treasury yields and the US Dollar (USD) reversed their initial gains.