NZD/USD posts modest gains near 0.5650 on Trump tariff confusion

• NZD/USD trades with mild gains around 0.5640 in Tuesday's early Asian session. 
• The USD softens in choppy trade on Trump tariff confusion. 
• The upbeat economic data and supportive measures from China could support the Kiwi in the near term. 

The NZD/USD pair trades on a stronger note around 0.5640 during the early Asian session on Tuesday. The weakening of the US Dollar (USD) on confusion about President-elect Donald Trump's tariff plans provides some support to the pair. The US ISM Services Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for December is due later on Tuesday. 

The Washington Post reported on Monday that Trump is considering a tariff plan that will narrow the focus to a select set of goods and services. However, Trump denied the report. "The market consensus is that Trump's bark will be worse than his bite, and any news that confirms that concept is fuel for rallying in risk assets and for a decline in the dollar and Treasury yields, but the reality here is that the downside risks remain and there's no clear endpoint for that," said Karl Schamotta, chief market strategist at Corpay in Toronto.

Nonetheless, the hawkish remarks from the US Federal Reserve (Fed) might lift the Greenback and act as a headwind for the pair. On Monday, Fed Governor Lisa Cook said that Fed policymakers could be more cautious with further rate cuts, citing labor market resilience and stickier inflation. 

The encouraging Chinese economic data could boost the China-proxy Kiwi. China's services activity expanded at the fastest pace in seven months in December, Caixin PMI showed on Monday. Additionally, the supportive measures from China might contribute to the NZD's upside as China is a major trading partner for New Zealand.