• AUD/USD edges higher to around 0.6715 in Monday’s early Asian session. 
• Rising bets on smaller Fed rate cuts could cap the USD’s downside. 
• Strong Australian job data lowers expectations of the RBA rate cut. 

The AUD/USD pair extends its recovery to near 0.6715 during the early Asian session on Monday. The modest decline of the Greenback provides some support to the pair. Investors will keep an eye on the speeches from Federal Reserve (Fed) officials later on Monday, including Neel Kashkari and Jeffrey Schmid. 

The Australian Dollar (AUD) strengthens as the upbeat employment data make it less likely that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will opt for an interest rate cut this year. The Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed last week that the country’s Unemployment Rate in September was 4.1%. Economists estimated the rate would remain at the 4.2% initially reported for August. 

“Ultimately, this means less pressure on the RBA to bring forward its rate cut timeline,” said Russel Chesler, the head of investments and capital markets at VanEck. “The market is pricing in cuts to start by February 2025, but we believe rate cuts will start much later in 2025,” Chesler added.