AUD/USD remains capped below the 0.6600 barrier ahead of the RBA’s Bullock speech, US CPI data

• AUD/USD loses ground near 0.6572 on the stronger US Dollar.
• US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) for November rose by 199K vs. 150,000 prior, above expectations.
• The downbeat Chinese CPI and PPI data weigh on the Australian Dollar.
• Investors await the RBA’s Bullock speech and US CPI data on Tuesday.

The AUD/USD pair edges lower below the 0.6600 barrier during the early Asian session on Monday. The upbeat US Nonfarm Payrolls data lift the US Treasury bond yields and the US Dollar (USD). The pair currently trades around 0.6572, down 0.09% on the day.

Data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday that the US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) for November rose by 199,000 from October’s increase of 150,000 and came in above the market expectation of 180,000. Meanwhile, the Unemployment Rate declined to 3.7% from 3.9% in the same period. Average Hourly Earnings remained steady at 4.0%, in line with the market expectations. Finally, the preliminary University of Michigan Consumer Survey for December arrived at 69.4 from 61.3 in the previous reading, the second-highest reading this year.

The job market continues to be resilient after a year of recession worries. Futures market pricing suggests that the Fed will end its rate-hiking cycle and start cutting rates next year. However, the market lowered its expectations for the first-rate cuts after the employment data from March to May. The Fed will hold its two-day policy meeting,  starting on Tuesday. Investors will take cues about how officials view the economy.

On the Aussie front, the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed last week that the nation’s trade surplus narrowed to 7,129M in October from 6,184 in the previous reading, below the market estimation of 7,500M. However, the concern about deflation in China and the weaker than expected Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Producer Price Index (PPI) exert some selling pressure on the China-proxy Australian Dollar (AUD).

Market players will keep an eye on the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Bullock’s speech on Tuesday and the US CPI data due on Tuesday. The attention will shift to the two-day policy Fed meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday. This event could trigger volatility in the market and give a clear direction to the AUD/USD pair.