AUD/USD extends slide below 0.68 after US NFP data

• Nonfarm Payrolls in US increase by 164K in July as expected.
• US Dollar Index stages modest rebound following employment data.
• US President Trump says tariffs could be cancelled if China takes positive action.

The AUD/USD pair came under renewed bearish pressure in the early trading hours of the American session after the Greenback started to gather strength following the labour market data from the United States. As of writing, the pair was down 0.32% on the day at 0.6777.

Dollar rebounds modestly on jobs data

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics today reported that Nonfarm Payrolls in the US increased by 164,000 in July as expected but June’s reading got revised down to 193,000 from 224,000. Other details of the publication showed that the wage inflation, as measured by the Average Hourly Earnings, rose 3.2% on a yearly basis in July to come in slightly better than analysts’ estimate of 3.1%.

With the initial reaction, the US Dollar Index pulled away from its daily lows and was last seen at 98.25, where it was still down 0.15% on a daily basis. Later in the session, Factory Orders and the University of Michigan’s Consumer Confidence Index will be looked upon for fresh impetus.

On the other hand, US President Donald Trump, who announced a 10% additional tariff on $300 billion worth of Chinese goods yesterday, told CNBC that they could delay or halt the imposition of tariffs if China takes positive action, helping the Aussie limit its losses for the time being.

Technical levels to watch for