The AUD/USD pair traded cautiously near a fresh two-month low around 0.6400 during Friday's European trading session. The AUD/USD pair is expected to remain volatile as investors await Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium (JH) at 14:00 GMT.

Investors will be closely watching Fed Chairman Powell's speech for fresh clues on whether the US central bank will cut interest rates at its September policy meeting.

Ahead of Powell's speech, the US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, hit a new 10-day high around 98.80.

Meanwhile, traders have reduced bets favoring a Fed rate cut in September. According to the CME FedWatch tool, the probability of the Fed cutting interest rates in September has decreased to 73.3% from 85.4% recorded a week ago.

On Thursday, Kansas City Fed Bank President Jeffrey Schmid stated that there was no immediate need to cut interest rates because inflation remained above the central bank's 2% target.

In Australia, upbeat preliminary S&P Global Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) data for August failed to lift the Australian dollar. The institution reported on Thursday that the Composite PMI was 54.9, higher than 53.8 in July. Strong business activity in the manufacturing and services sectors contributed to strong growth in the private sector. (alg)

Source: Fxstreet