“We need to raise the pressure on Beijing,” US Vice President Kamala Harris said while speaking in Hanoi.
She added that “excessive Chinese maritime claims must be challenged.”
On Tuesday, Harris said that Beijing continues to “coerce”, “intimidate” in the South China Sea.
Market reaction
The recent comments from Harris offset the optimism from the US’ approval of licenses for Huawei to buy auto chips.
The risk trades ease ahead of the key US data and Fed’s Jackson Hole Symposium, lifting the US dollar broadly at the expense of the risker currencies such as AUD.
AUD/USD was last seen trading at 0.7240, down 0.22% on the day.