AUD/USD clings to upbeat Aussie trade data-led recovery gains

   •  Aussie boosted by upbeat domestic trade balance data/modest USD retracement.
   •  Traders look upon US data for some impetus ahead of RBA statement and NFP.

The AUD/USD pair caught some fresh bids on Thursday and is now headed back towards previous session's swing high. 

As was widely expected, the Fed left interest rates unchanged and acknowledged that inflation is moving closer to its target. The US Dollar bulls, however, seemed unimpressed as the accompanying statement provided little clues over a faster pace of rate hikes in response to a pickup in inflation. 

With investors looking past Wednesday's FOMC monetary policy update, renewed US-China trade tensions prompted some USD weakness on Thursday. This coupled with upbeat Australian trade balance data, coming in to show a trade surplus of A$1.53 billion, provided an additional boost and remained supportive of the pair's short-covering bounce.

Moving ahead, the release of US ISM non-manufacturing PMI would now be looked upon for some fresh impetus later during the early NA session, while the RBA's monetary policy statement might influence the pair's movement during the Asian session on Friday.  

The key focus, however, would be on the keenly watched US monthly jobs report (NFP), which should help investors determine the pair's next leg of directional move. 

Technical levels to watch

Any subsequent up-move is likely to confront fresh supply near mid-0.7500s, above which a fresh bout of short-covering could assist the pair to move back towards 0.7575-80 supply zone en-route the 0.7600 handle.

On the flip side, the key 0.75 psychological mark might continue to protect the immediate downside and is followed by support near the 0.7475-70 region, which if broken might turn the pair vulnerable to extend its downfall in the near-term.