AUD/USD tests 0.70 marks as greenback ignores today's GDP data
- US economy expanded 3.1% in the first quarter as expected.
- US Dollar Index fails to break out of range following the uninspiring data.
- Attention turns to US-China trade talks at G20 summit.
The AUD/USD pair inched higher on Thursday and touched the 0.70 mark for the first time in more than two weeks as today's data from the United States failed to help the greenback gain traction. As of writing, the pair was up 0.2% on the day at 0.6996.
The lack of significant macroeconomic data releases from Australia is allowing the greenback's market valuation to continue to drive the pair's action today. In its third estimate, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported that the real-GDP in the first quarter expanded by 3.1% on a yearly basis to match the previous estimate and the market consensus.
Other data from the U.S. revealed that the number of citizens applying for unemployment benefits rose by 10,000 to 227,000 in the week ending June. The US Dollar Index, which spent a large part of the day in a relatively tight range near the 96.20 mark was last posting small daily losses.
Meanwhile, the Chinese news outlet Global Times today claimed that the fact that President Trump continues to use bullying tactics like threatening to impose additional tariffs will have a negative impact on this weekend's talks between Trump and Chinese President Xi. Nevertheless, these headlines don't seem to be weighing on antipodeans for the time being and investors will remain focused on fresh developments surrounding the trade negotiations.
Technical levels to watch for