Daily Economic Commentary: New Zealand

Range, range, range. Despite the overall aversion to risk of the market yesterday, the Kiwi was able to stay afloat. NZD/USD mainly traded between a tight range with resistance at .8300 and support at .8245. By the end of the U.S. trading session, NZD/USD was trading at .8258, barely changed from its opening price at .8245.

The Kiwi’s non-movement was also due to the absence of economic data. Yesterday, there were no economic reports that came out of New Zealand.
Today, we could see the Kiwi move in a similar fashion as New Zealand’s economic calendar presents nothing of interest again. Do watch out for the ADP non-farm employment change from the U.S. though… It could indirectly affect the Kiwi’s price action!

Ain’t no stopping the Kiwi baby! Once again, NZD/USD soared, rising 72 pips to close at .8331, a new all-time high! Okay fine, it beat the old record by just a few pips, but hey, the fact that it’s at all-time highs should mean something!

As long as traders are feeling risky and get the urge to put their money in higher yielding assets, look for them to park their money in the Kiwi. It’s benefitting from a nice commodity bull run, as well as higher domestic interest rates. If the economy recovers well from the disastrous earthquake earlier this year, the New Zealand dollar could make a case as the top performing currency of the year award.

After dipping to an intraday low of .8288, the Kiwi flew to its new all-time high against the dollar at .8371 in Friday’s trading. Now that’s a rocketeer right there! NZD/USD then ended the week just a pip lower at .8370 with a 39-pip gain for the day.

We didn’t have any economic report from New Zealand. Some market junkies say that the Kiwi was able to hustle some muscle primarily because of the dollar’s weakness following the disappointing NFP report for June.

With that said and given that our forex calendar is once again blank for economic data for the Kiwi, keep tabs on market sentiment to help you gauge which direction the Kiwi is headed in today’s trading.

Ouch! No thanks to another case of risk aversion, the Kiwi bulls experienced a massive beating yesterday. NZD/USD, after opening the week at .8363, fell to .8276 by the end of the U.S. trading session. That’s a painful 87 pip loss!

If you’re wondering why the market went into risk aversion mode again, don’t worry because I will tell ya! This time around, it seems that the market is afraid that the debt problems will spread to the weaker nations in the euro zone like Italy and Spain. These nations have very high debt and have been showing disappointing growth figures.

There weren’t any economic data released from New Zealand yesterday and we won’t be seeing any again today. This means that the Kiwi will probably be driven by data coming out of other major economies like the U.S. and euro zone. Check out the forex calendar to see which important you should keep an eye out for!

Strike two for the comdoll! The Kiwi took another beating against the Greenback yesterday as traders continued to flock the low-yielding currencies on a bout of risk aversion in markets. NZD/USD ended up dropping to an intraday low of .8109 before it leveled off to only a 93-pip loss at .8184. Yikes!

So what’s up with the Kiwi hatin’? Well, to make the Kiwi bulls feel better, it wasn’t just the Kiwi that took a hit yesterday. Heck, all of Happy Pip’s comdolls weakened against the Greenback! And to think Canada and Australia even released positive economic reports. Apparently, debt contagion concerns in the euro zone is just too strong for the currency bears to ignore.

Let’s see if the Kiwi bulls get their mojos today when New Zealand releases its quarterly GDP report at 10:45 pm GMT. Market geeks are expecting the data to inch 0.3% higher in the first quarter, but make sure you prepare for any surprises, aight?

“Eat my dust, dollar!” Amid the broad dollar weakness, the Kiwi skyrocketed to a high of .8386 before ending the day with a 173-pip gain at .8355.

Aside from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s remarks about the possibility of QE3, it also helped that China’s GDP report for Q3 2011 came in as expected at 9.5%. Remember that comdolls usually rally on positive data from China as it accounts for the majority of export demand of New Zealand.

To make things even better for the Kiwi, New Zealand’s GDP report for the second quarter of the year came in at 0.8% while the market only expected a measly 0.3% uptick. The Q1 2011 reading was also revised up to 0.5% after being initially reported at 0.2%. Boo yeah!

Hmm, I wonder if the positive figure will be enough for the Kiwi to chill around its new all-time high at .8507 in today’s trading. Keep tabs on market sentiment to find out! Keep in mind that the Kiwi usually rallies when risk appetite picks up.

Thanks to a very impressive GDP report, the Kiwi was able to make significant advances versus other major currencies yesterday. NZD/USD, after opening the Asian trading session at .8361, rose as high as .8506. It retraced its gains as the day went on though, closing the day at .8411 for a decent 52-pip gain.

New Zealand, according to the GDP report, grew by 0.8% during the first quarter of this year, significantly higher than the 0.3% increase the market expected. This gave the market reason to believe that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand could raise rates in their next meeting.

No data coming out of New Zealand today, so don’t expect to see the same amount of volatility as yesterday. Keep a close eye on upcoming U.S. data though (CPI at 12:30 pm GMT and University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey at 1:55 pm GMT), as they could indirectly affect the Kiwi’s price action.

Charlie Sheen, is that you? The Kiwi tacked another “winning” day against the Greenback last Friday with NZD/USD capping the day with a 57-pip gain at .8464 after hitting an intraday low of .8380 during the London session.

It seems that the currency bulls just couldn’t get enough of the Kiwi! No economic report was released from New Zealand last Friday, but remember that the country had already printed a better-than-expected GDP report early in the week. Of course, a strong Chinese GDP also released early last week didn’t hurt the comdoll bulls.

Speaking of strong reports, New Zealand has just released its CPI figures for the second quarter. As the report showed, New Zealand’s CPI climbed at an annualized rate of 5.3%, a 21-year high, as fuel, food, and power prices rose in the quarter. Meanwhile, the headline figure clocked in at 1.0% from the first quarter’s 0.8%. Does this mean that we’ll soon see the RBNZ take center stage at interest rate hike speculations?

Looks like we’ll have to wait a bit longer, kids. You see, no other economic data will be released from New Zealand this week. Nevertheless, keep close tabs on the Kiwi’s price action! We never know when the Kiwi bears wake up from their hibernation.

NZD/USD moved sideways yesterday thanks to the lack of economic data from New Zealand. The pair found resistance around the .8466 week open price and support near .8420. Could the Kiwi have a chance to bust out of its range today?

Alas! The economic schedule of New Zealand is still empty today! This means that the Kiwi could be tossed this way and that by risk sentiment, as well as economic reports from its comdoll buddies. Don’t forget that the RBA is set to release its monetary policy meeting minutes while the BOC is scheduled to make its interest rate decision today, which means that you should drop by my Australian economic commentary and my forex fundamentals on Canada.

Can anybody say “fresh record highs?” Yesterday the Kiwi was almost as fresh as I am in my new leather pants when it tipped a new record high against the Greenback on a wave of risk appetite in markets. NZD/USD climbed all the way to .8573 before capping the day with a 120-pip gain at .8556. Not bad eh?

The Kiwi strength is amazing given that New Zealand didn’t even release any economic report. As it turned out, the rally in risk appetite is enough to push the comdoll to new heights.

Will the Kiwi bulls do as well today when New Zealand releases an economic report? Data on visitor arrivals will be published today at 10:45 pm GMT, and a figure better than May’s 0.3% decline might convince more traders to flock the high-yielding Kiwi.

Another new record for the Kiwi! NZD/USD reached a new record high at .8589 yesterday as the pair got a boost from risk appetite. How much higher can the Kiwi go?

News that both the U.S. and the euro zone are moving closer to finding a solution to their debt problems kept risk aversion at bay yesterday. Because of that, NZD/USD broke out of consolidation to establish a new record high near the .8600 major psychological level. In fact, the Kiwi seemed to ignore the reported 5.1% drop in visitor arrivals for June, TEN times worse than the 0.5% decline seen last May.

Today, only the credit card spending report is due from New Zealand. Last May, credit card spending was up by 5.1% from a year ago. Another increase could provide support for the Kiwi, but all that depends on whether risk appetite stays in the markets or not. Stay on your toes for any changes in market sentiment!

We should call the Kiwi the “Fresh Prince” by the way it posted fresh all-time highs yesterday! With risk appetite fueling its rise, NZD/USD managed to crawl into never-before-seen territory, climbing up to .8623 to post a 60-pip gain.

Even though credit card spending growth ticked down from 5.5% to 4.5% last month, the Kiwi went on its merry way and continued hiking up the charts. Now that the Kiwi is forging new all-time highs, New Zealand officials have begun expressing their concerns about its strength. Will they play the jawboning and intervention game, too? Another question we should be asking is, “How soon can we expect to see a rate hike from the RBNZ now that the economy is showing signs of stabilizing?”

Fortunately, we’ll have time to think about that since New Zealand won’t be rolling any reports out today. In the meantime, look for developments in the U.S. to direct price action on NZD/USD. Good luck, kids!

Did you catch that Kiwi move last Friday? NZD/USD reached another new record high! The pair rallied past the .8600 level that day and topped at .8675 before closing at .8643. Will we see more highs from the Kiwi this week?

New Zealand didn’t release any economic data last Friday but improved risk appetite continued to push the pair upwards. Today, New Zealand is set to release its trade balance for June at 10:45 pm GMT. Watch out for this particular report because their surplus is projected to fall from 605 million NZD to 404 million NZD during the month. If that happens or if the actual figure comes in weaker than consensus, the Kiwi might be forced to retreat from its recent highs.

No reports are due from New Zealand on Tuesday as it gears up for a busy day on Wednesday. During the Asian session, the NBNZ business confidence report will be released while the RBNZ will make their rate decision during the U.S. session around 9:00 pm GMT. The central bank is expected to keep rates on hold at 2.50% but watch out for any comments regarding future monetary policy moves. Lastly, on Thursday, New Zealand will report its building consents for June.

“I can get used to this!” said the Kiwi as it hung above the .8600 handle against the Greenback. Despite weak trade balance data, the Kiwi was able to trade comfortably in the area of its new all-time highs. Can it keep this up?

You wouldn’t be able to tell from the way the Kiwi has been trading that New Zealand’s trade surplus dropped from 552 million NZD to 230 million NZD last month, falling short of expectations for a 391 million NZD surplus.

Not the best data for June, but there is a silver lining to all of this. Overall, exports rose 4.5% last quarter, with dairy and meat products leading the way.

As an export-dependent country, New Zealand will be keeping a close eye on its bread-winning industry, especially now that the Kiwi is trading at new all-time highs. That being said, expect the RBNZ to take into consideration yesterday’s results when it makes its rate decision tomorrow. In the meantime, keep risk sentiment in check, fellas!

Ain’t no thang but a Kiwi wing! For the 6th consecutive day, NZD/USD closed higher, as the pair closed another 50 pips higher at .8716. Is there no stopping the mighty Kiwi?

Later today, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand will be releasing its interest rate decision. No rate change is expected, but it’d be best to stay on your toes and listen to the accompanying statement. It’ll be interesting to see what RBNZ Governor Alan Bollard has to say about the state of the economy and the strong rise of the Kiwi. Tune in at 9:00 pm GMT to find out what will be said!

A good start, but a poor finish was what we got from the Kiwi yesterday! A strong reading from the NBNZ business confidence lifted it up in the Tokyo session, but NZD/USD eventually gave up all of its gains late in the New York session. What can we expect today?

After the NBNZ business confidence report upgraded its reading from 46.5 to 47.6, the Kiwi started marching up the charts. As a matter of fact, it tapped a new all-time high at .8767 before it turned down and erased all its intraday gains. Apparently, the perkiness of New Zealand business sentiment wasn’t enough to sustain the Kiwi’s rally, even though spirits were up in all sectors of the economy.

It should come as no surprise then that the RBNZ sounded really hawkish in its rate statement a few hours ago. RBNZ Governor Bollard and his men believe that the economy is picking up steam, and that it may actually be strong enough to warrant a rate hike soon. New Zealand has certainly come a long way from its rate-cutting days back in March!

So far, this has been great news for Kiwi bulls, who have eagerly been buying Kiwis since the rate statement was made. However, the bullish move isn’t as strong as you’d expect, probably because Bollard expressed concern about the Kiwi’s strength and its effect on the economy.

The only report due today is the monthly building permits release, which posted a 2.2% increase in May. Should this print a strong rise, it would be the second straight month that growth in building approvals accelerated. Who knows, maybe that’s what buyers are waiting to see before they take the Kiwi to new all-time highs!

Oooohhhhh baby, it’s starting to look like the Kiwi has run out of steam! For the second day in a row, NZD/USD failed to sail higher, as it closed right at its opening price of .8692. Is this the top for the Kiwi?

If you ask me, I ain’t quite ready to call a top on the Kiwi. The pair may fall in the coming days as traders book some profits, but there’s a good chance that they will also see any dips as buying opportunities. Of course, everything might change over the next couple of days, but for now, the Kiwi is STRONG!

Late yesterday, building consents data showed that approvals fell by 1.4% in June, after they rose by 2.4% in May. This didn’t have too much of an effect on Kiwi trading, but this is something I’ll be monitoring in the coming months.

No biggies on the docket, but it’d be best if you kept an eye out for shifts in risk sentiment. As my momma always used to say, things can change on a dime, so be careful out there!

“Eat my dust, dollar!” The Kiwi smoked the dollar’s butt on Friday when NZD/USD bounced off support at .8650 and rallied to close just a few pips below its all-time highs at .8789 with a 95-pip win.

No economic reports were released from New Zealand but the pessimism over the U.S. debt ceiling seemed enough for investors to buy Kiwis in exchange for ‘em Greenbacks.

Our forex calendar is still blank data for the Kiwi today so keep tabs on market sentiment, ayt?

Just like its comdoll siblings, the New Zealand dollar started the week off on a weaker note, as risk aversion took over the markets. NZD/USD suffered a 29 pip loss to close at .8766. Could this finally be the week where the Kiwi gives back its ridiculous gains?

No biggies on the docket today, but that don’t mean we won’t see any wild moves on the Kiwi. Watch out for shifts in risk sentiment, as it seems like that could be dominant market theme for this week.

Whoa! Is it open season for the Kiwi?? It looks like bears hunted down the currency in yesterday’s trading as NZD/USDplunged from its intraday high of .8785 all the way down to its closing price of .8670.

Although New Zealand’s labor cost index for the second quarter came in as expected at 0.5%, continued concerns about the U.S. economy and Europe’s sovereign crisis took a toll on higher-yielding currencies.

But perhaps the employment report, due later at 10:45 pm GMT, will be able spark enough good vibes for the Kiwi. Watch out so a figure better than the expected 0.1% uptick in employment change. Meanwhile, also keep in mind that the unemployment rate is seen to come in at 6.5%.