A$ Consolidates Above 0.6600, Up 1.5% Last Week

AUD/USD sits near 0.6620/25 in early Monday Asia Pac trade. Friday highs came close to 0.6670, post the NPF print, before losing momentum into the US close. The detail of the US NFP print wasn't deemed as poor as first feared, which helped stabilize USD sentiment. AUD/USD ended Friday's session close to unchanged, but last week the pair gained 1.49%, amid broad USD weakness.

• The technical backdrop for AUD/USD is firmer. Friday highs at 0.6668 is seen as initial resistance, beyond that lies a Fibonacci projection at 0.6708. On the downside, the 50-day EMA is at 0.6563.
• While US yields ended lower last week, we finished up off post NFP lows. The equity bull run also took a breather, with EU and US markets lower to end the week (SPX -0.65% for Friday's session). This helped trims the AUD's advance.
• In the commodity space, we were down for both the aggregate Bloomberg index and the base metals index. Iron ore is back to the low $114/ton region in terms of the Singapore active contract, unable to sustain moves above $116/ton.
• The local data calendar is empty today. Australian Treasury Chalmers has been on the wires this morning, stating the budget faces big medium term pressures, while also noting the growth slowdown can't be ignored (although inflation remains the primary focus, BBG).
• The Australian Council of Financial Regulators (CFR) noted this morning that households who are struggling to meet mortgage payments has risen, albeit from historically low levels (see this BBG link).