AUD/USD dormant near 0.7910 to begin new week
- AUD/USD stalled last week's gains.
- pair prone to downside on neutral RBA tone.
- Chinese New Year and light data promises low volumes in Asia.
AUD/USD begins a new week opening just underneath 0.7910, after a decline in Friday's trading capped off the mostly-bullish week.
Asian markets can expect a lack of volume today as Chinese New Years celebrations have China's banks and institutions shuttered for the first half of the week.
Little is on the docket for Australian releases this week outside of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) publishing their Meeting's Minutes for February early on Tuesday at 00:30 GMT, but little surprise is expected as RBA Governor Lowe has kept markets abreast of the central bank's decision-making process in the midst of middling economic data and sluggish growth for Australia's economy.
The Aussie rallied against the US Dollar last week, but slid once again on Friday, threatening a return to the bearish action seen recently that marred 2018's early bull run. The mixed employment figures for the island country left the RBA hopeful, but staunchly opposed to the idea of an increase in rates any time soon. AUD can expect to retain a soft underbelly going foward as long as the RBA is trapped in wait-and-see mode for the foreseeable future.
AUD/USD Technicals
FXStreet.com's own Valeria Bednarik notes, "Technically, the daily chart shows that, after bottoming near the 61.8% retracement of its December/January rally, the pair stalled its recovery around the 23.6% retracement of the same advance, but found support for a second consecutive day at 0.7890, the 38.2% retracement... the Momentum indicator is flat within bearish territory, while the RSI heads lower around 50, all of which supports a downward extension ahead, particularly on a break below the mentioned support. Shorter term, and according to the 4 hours chart, the pair closed below a bullish 20 SMA, while technical indicators retreated within positive territory, not enough at this point, to confirm a bearish extension."