AUD/USD hits two-week high amid Powell testimony

• AUD/USD surpasses key resistance levels, as Powell's testimony suggests peak interest rates.
• Soft US job data and Powell's cautious stance on rate cuts fuel optimism for AUD, highlighting a shift in Fed policy outlook.
• US ADP report and JOLTS data show job market resilience, adding a complex layer to economic evaluations.

The Australian Dollar soars against the US Dollar in the mid-North American session as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell testifies at the US Senate and opens the door for rate cuts later in the year. That and “soft” jobs data underpins the AUD/USD above a key resistance level and trades at 0.6573, up more than 1%.

AUD/USD conquers key technical confluence of 100 and 200-DMAs, amid soft US data and Powell comments

In his testimony before the US Senate Banking Committee on Capitol Hill, US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell indicated that interest rates had reached their peak and suggested that it would be premature to consider reducing rates in the near future. He expressed confidence in the progress towards achieving the Fed's inflation target of 2%.

In the Q&A session, Chair Powell emphasized that any future rate cuts would be data-dependent, underscoring the importance of precise monetary policy adjustments over rapid rate reductions. He noted that inflation is on a downward trend and conveyed optimism about the economy, stating there is no imminent risk of recession in the near term.

On the data front, the February US ADP National Employment Report revealed that private companies added 140,000 jobs, falling short of the anticipated 150,000 hires but still surpassing the 111,000 job increase reported in January. Recently, the US Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) for January reported 8.863 million job openings, which did not meet expectations and was slightly below the previous month's figures of 8.9 million and 8.889 million, respectively.

Meanwhile, AUD/USD traders will consider the Australian Balance of Trade and Chinese economic data. On the US front, traders are eyeing the Initial Jobless Claims report, the Balance of Trade, and the testimony of Fed Chair Powell at the US House of Representatives.

AUD/USD Price Analysis: Technical outlook

The AUD/USD bounced off the week's lows and reclaimed the 100 and 200-day moving averages (DMAs) at around 0.6560/61, extending its gains toward 0.6581. Despite that, buyers failed to conquer the 50-DMA at 0.6591, which could open the door for a pullback. A breach of the latter will expose 0.6600. On the other hand, if sellers stepped in and pushed the price below 0.6560, that could pave the way to challenge 0.6500, ahead of the March 5 swing low of 0.6477.