AUD/USD bulls manage to defend 0.78 handle, for the time being

The AUD/USD pair caught some fresh bids near the 0.7800 handle and has managed to rebound over 30-pips from 1-1/2 week lows touched earlier. 

Currently hovering around 100-day SMA, near the 0.7830-35 region, the pair's recovery move from Asian session lows could be solely attributed to a modest US Dollar pull-back. 

A subdued action around the US Treasury bond yields, which failed to provide any fresh bullish impetus to the greenback's ongoing up-move, seems to have prompted some short-covering around higher-yielding currencies - like the Aussie.

However, renewed optimism over the US President Donald Trump's tax overhaul plans, after the US Senate passed a budget blueprint for the next fiscal year, might now contribute towards keeping a lid on any strong near-term up-move for the major. 

Today's economic docket lacks any major market moving releases and hence, the key focus would remain on the Australian Q3 CPI release, due on Wednesday, and Friday's advance US Q3 GDP print. 

Technical levels to watch

Immediate resistance is pegged near 0.7845 area, above which the pair could aim towards clearing 0.7880 supply zone before eventually darting towards 50-day SMA hurdle near the 0.7910 region.

On the flip side, 0.7800 handle now seems to have emerged as immediate support, which if broken might turn the pair vulnerable to accelerate the slide towards 0.7775 intermediate support en-route mid-0.7700s.