AUD/USD refreshes daily low, around 0.7125-20 area amid broad-based USD strength

• AUD/USD struggled to preserve stronger Australian CPI-led intraday gains to the 0.7175 region.
• Rebounding US bond yields, Fed rate hike bets underpinned the USD and exerted some pressure.
• Stability in the European equity markets failed to lend any support to the perceived riskier aussie.

The USD continued scaling higher through the mid-European session and dragged the AUD/USD pair to a fresh daily low, around the 0.7125 region in the last hour.

The pair struggled to capitalize on its early uptick supported by hotter-than-expected Australian CPI figures and attracted fresh selling near the 0.7175 area on Tuesday amid sustained US dollar buying. Against the backdrop of expectations for a faster policy tightening by the Fed, a strong rebound in the US Treasury bond yields pushed the greenback to a fresh two-week high. This, in turn, was seen as a key factor that exerted downward pressure on the AUD/USD pair.

Investors now seem convinced that the Fed would begin raising interest rates in March and have been pricing in a total of four hikes in 2022. Apart from this, rising geopolitical risk over Ukraine further benefitted the greenback's relative safe-haven status. The combination of factors, to a larger extent, negated signs of stability in the European equity markets and failed to impress bullish traders or lend any support to the perceived riskier aussie.

With the USD price dynamics turning out to be a key driver of the AUD/USD pair's momentum, traders now look forward to the Conference Board's US Consumer Confidence Index for a fresh impetus. Apart from this, the US bond yields will drive the USD demand. This, along with the broader market risk sentiment, should produce some trading opportunities. The key focus, however, will remain on the outcome of a two-day FOMC meeting, scheduled to be announced on Wednesday.

From a technical perspective, the emergence of fresh selling on Tuesday favours bearish traders and supports prospects for an extension of last week's rejection slide from the 100-day SMA. Sustained weakness below the 0.7100 mark will reaffirm the negative outlook and turn the AUD/USD pair vulnerable. The downward trajectory could then drag spot prices to the 0.7060-50 intermediate support en-route the 2021 swing low, around the key 0.7000 psychological mark.

Technical levels to watch