AUD/USD struggles to hold above 0.6600 ahead of US data

• Market sentiment improves slightly ahead of US session.
• Investors continue to assess latest coronavirus headlines on Tuesday.
• US Dollar Index clings to small gains ahead of CB Consumer Confidence data.

The AUD/USD pair rose modestly during the Asian trading hours and touched a daily high of 0.6623 before starting to erase its gains. As of writing, the pair was down 0.12% on the day at 0.6596.

The rebound witnessed in Asian equity indexes on Tuesday following Monday's plunge helped the risk-sensitive AUD stay resilient against the USD. However, the uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus outbreak's impact on the global economy persists with cases outside of China continuing to increase. Earlier in the day, Croatia and Austria both reported their first confirmed cases and the number of infections in Iran rose to 34.

USD gathers strength on recovering T-bond yields

Nevertheless, the market sentiment seems to have improved slightly ahead of the American session with US stocks futures turning positive on the day and the 10-year US Treasury bond yield retracing its daily drop.

On the other hand, the rebound seen in the US T-bond yields also helps the greenback find demand and make it difficult for the pair to stay in the positive territory.

The US economic docket on Tuesday will feature the Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index and the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index. Ahead of these data, the US Dollar ındex is up 0.05% on the day at 99.35. The only data from Australia on Wednesday will be the Construction Work Done for the fourth quarter.

Technical levels to watch for