AUD/USD retreats from one-week top on renewed USD buying, holds above 0.6500

The AUD/USD pair retreats from the vicinity of mid-0.6500s, or a one-week high touched earlier this Wednesday and extends its steady intraday descent through the first half of the European session. The downward trajectory drags spot prices to a fresh daily low, around the 0.6515 region in the last hour and is sponsored by the emergence of some US Dollar (USD) dip-buying.

The US Treasury bond yields rebound swiftly after the overnight sharp fall amid the growing conviction that US President-elect Donald Trump's expansionary policies will boost inflation and limit the scope for the Federal Reserve (Fed) to cut rates. Apart from this, the worsening Russia-Ukraine conflict turns out to be another factor underpinning the safe-haven buck, which, in turn, is seen exerting some downward pressure on the AUD/USD pair. 

Meanwhile, the initial market reaction to Russia's announcement that it would lower its threshold for a nuclear strike faded after comments from Russian and US officials eased concerns about the onset of a full-blown nuclear war. This is evident from a generally positive tone around the equity markets, which could act as a headwind for the safe-haven Greenback and help limit the downside for perceived riskier currencies, including the Aussie.

Furthermore, the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) hawkish stance should offer some support to the AUD/USD pair. In fact, the RBA November meeting minutes released on Tuesday indicated that the board remains vigilant to upside inflation risks and believes that policy needs to remain restrictive. This might hold back traders from placing aggressive bearish bets around the Australian Dollar (AUD) and act as a tailwind for the currency pair. 

Moving ahead, investors now look forward to speeches from a slew of influential FOMC members, due later during the North American session, for cues about the future rate-cut path. This, along with the US bond yields and the broader risk sentiment, will drive the USD and produce short-term trading opportunities around the AUD/USD pair. The focus will then shit on RBA  Governor Michele Bullock's speech during the early Asian hours on Thursday.