AUD/USD: Hong Kong protests, a lack of data/events limit response to phase one news

With the escalating tension in Hong Kong and an absence of major data/events at home, AUD/USD shrugs off the latest trade positive headlines from US and China. The quote takes rounds to 0.6815 by the press time of initial Asian morning session on Monday.

While the United States (US) President Donald Trump cited China’s big agriculture buying to portray the optimism surrounding “phase one” discussions, media reports from the dragon nation also cite Friday’s phone call between the two sides as constructive. Though, neither the Trump administration nor China is giving any strong clues as to when the initial trade agreement will be signed.

Protests in Hong Kong continue to escalate with the latest reports suggesting the use of fire by protesters fail to stop the police from entering the Polytechnic University campus. The tension has been a week old with no signs of a solution taking place. The United States (US) favors the protesters’ right to challenge the “one country, two systems” but China doesn’t like it and the same keeps market’s risk sentiment negatively affected due to the tension in Hong Kong.

That said, S&P 500 Futures stays unchanged around 3,119 while portraying the market’s wait and watch mood in spite of broadly positive headlines from the US and China.

Moving on, a lack of major data/event keeps pushing traders to US-China headlines, not to forget Hong Kong, for fresh direction. Though, Tuesday’s monetary policy meeting minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will be the key to watch.

Technical Analysis

A daily closing beyond the support-turned-resistance line, around 0.6835, becomes necessary for the pair to recall buyers. Alternatively, multiple tops marked during late-September and early October keep the pair’s downside limited around 0.6800.