The AUD/USD has been giving back some of its recent gains and today’s Chinese PMI miss is unlikely to help.

The Caixin manufacturing PMI  for Jan came in at 48.3 (vs. expected 49.6). This is a clear miss and will likely add to the negative economic narrative that we have been seeing recently out of China.

The Chinese continue to report weak data and it is clear that there are some worries. Whether that be the cycle or the US-China trade wars starting to bite.

The AUD/USD was already weaker ahead of the news and has started to fall further since the release.

Aussie Outlook

The AUD/USD tagged the major level at 0.7300 before falling back to the 0.7250 mark.

0.7050 and then 0.7000 are my next two key support levels below, with 0.7200 remaining as key support.

0.7300 is R1 and the most recent highs sitting at 0.7400.

The AUD/USD is a bit mixed today, with the risk-on play and higher Iron Ore the main drivers over the last few sessions.

Weakness in China changes the story a touch for the Aussie.