AUD/USD struggles to recover despite modest USD weakness, trades around 0.6820

• US-China trade uncertainty continues to weigh on antipodeans.
• US Dollar Index struggles to build on Friday's NFP-inspired gains.
• Coming up: RBA Governor Lowe will deliver a speech at 22:05 GMT.

The AUD/USD pair snapped its four-week losing streak last week but seems to be having a tough time pushing higher on Monday. After moving sideways below the 0.6850 handle during the Asian trading hours, the pair slumped to a session low of 0.6819 in the last hour and was last seen trading at 0.6824, erasing 0.2% on a daily basis.

The uncertainty surrounding the US-China trade dispute with less than a week to go the US hikes tariffs on Chinese imports seems to be forcing investors to remain cautious. Earlier in the day, China’s Assistant Commerce Minister reiterated that they were hopeful that they could reach a trade deal that "satisfies both sides as soon as possible" but failed to help the market sentiment improve.

In the meantime, after staging a decisive rebound on the back of upbeat labour market data from the US on Friday, the US Dollar Index is staying in the negative territory on Monday to help the pair limit its losses for the time being.

What's next on the calendar?

Later in the day, Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Lowe will be delivering a speech at 22:05 GMT. During the early trading hours of the Asian session, the Australian Bureau of Statistics will release the House Price Index for the third quarter, which is expected to show a 0.2% increase in house prices following the second quarter's decline of 0.7%. Additionally, The Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) published by the Australian Government will be looked upon for fresh impetus.

Previewing this publication, Westpac analysts argued that the latest third-quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) numbers from Australia will cause the RBA and the Australian government to lower their future growth forecasts.

Technical levels to consider

AUD/USD