AUD/USD drops below 200-DMA on weaker-than-expected China services PMI

AUD/USD fell below 200-DMA level of 0.7553 after the Caixin data released in China showed the pace of expansion in the service sector activity unexpectedly slowed in March. The currency pair clocked a high of 0.7577 earlier today.

China’s Caixin March Services PMI came in at 52.2 vs. 52.6 last, while its composite was 52.1 vs. 52.6 last. The Services PMI was expected to rise to 53.2.

The Aussie dollar has been on a weaker footing, courtesy of dovish comments from the RBA earlier this week. The central bank took note of the softening of the labor market and rising house prices. The weaker-than-expected China PMI only adds to the bearish tone around the AUD.

Meanwhile, the risk aversion in Asia is also weighing over the Aussie this Thursday morning. At the time of writing, the S&P/AX 200 was down 27 points or 0.5%.

AUD/USD Technical Levels

The pair clocked a low of 0.7550 and was last seen trading around the 200-DMA of 0.7553. A break below 0.7543 (Mar 3 low) would open doors for 0.7514 (100-DMA) and 0.75 (zero figure). On the higher side, breach of resistance at 0.7582 (5-DMA) would open up upside towards 0.76 (zero figure) and 0.7631 (50-DMA).