AUD/USD sits near three-week tops, comfortably above 0.7400 mark
- AUD/USD added to its weekly gains and continued scaling higher for the third successive day.
- The RBA's plan to taper the bond-buying program continued acting as a tailwind for the aussie.
- A subdued USD demand remained support, though COVID-19 woes might cap any further gains.
The AUD/USD pair maintained its bid tone through the first half of the European session and was last seen trading around the 0.7415 region, just below the three-week tops set earlier this Wednesday.
The pair built on the previous day's hawkish RBA-inspired gains and prolonged this week's positive move for the third successive session. It is worth recalling that the RBA stuck with its plan to taper its bond-buying programme, which, in turn, was seen as a key factor that continued acting as a tailwind for the Australian dollar.
Apart from this, technical buying on a sustained move beyond the 0.7400 mark further contributed to the intraday positive move on Wednesday. That said, concerns about the economic fallout from the fast-spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus might hold traders from placing any aggressive bullish bets around the AUD/USD pair.
On the other hand, the prevalent cautious mood around the equity markets drove some haven flows towards the US dollar. Apart from this, a modest uptick in the US Treasury bond yields further underpinned the greenback, which might further collaborate to keep a lid on any runaway rally for the AUD/USD pair, at least for now.
Meanwhile, firming expectations that the Fed will retain its ultra-lose monetary policy stance for a longer period should cap gains for the USD. This, along with a near-term bullish breakout through the 0.7400 hurdle, supports prospects for a further near-term appreciating move, possibly towards testing the 0.7470-75 supply zone.
Market participants now look forward to the US economic docket, highlighting the release of the ADP report on private-sector employment and ISM Services PMI. Apart from this, the US bond yields and the broader market risk sentiment, might influence the USD price dynamics and produce some trading opportunities around the AUD/USD pair.
Technical levels to watch