- NZD/USD is currently consolidating around the 0.7150 mark at the start of Friday Asia Pacific trade.
- November trade numbers out of New Zealand gave little impetus to the kiwi, which is focused on global themes.
NZD/USD closed Thursday FX trade with gains of around 0.5% or 35 pips that saw the pair rally from close to the 0.7100 mark to highs above the 0.7170s. As Asia trade gets underway and markets quieten down following a turbulent US session that saw US equities hit all-time highs, the pair is consolidating around the 0.7150 mark.
New Zealand trade numbers barely budged the kiwi
New Zealand November trade data was released at 21:45GMT on Thursday and showed the country had a trade surplus of N$ 252M on the month, pretty much bang in line with expectations for a trade surplus of N$ 250B. Since November 2019, the country has amassed a trade surplus of N$ 3.26B. Total exports amounted to N$ 5.2B and total imports came in at N$ 4.95B.
Elsewhere, the ANZ Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence Index rose 5 points in December to 112 but remains well below 2017-2019 levels. “In a good sign for the retail sector, the proportion of people who believe it is a good time to buy a major household item lifted 7 points,” said analysts at ANZ. Meanwhile, House Price Inflation expectations rose to 6.7%, the strongest since the question was first asked in late 2010. This is unlikely to concern the RBNZ, though may concern the government, who has pledged to make housing more affordable.
Looking ahead for the kiwi, more survey data is out at 00:00GMT in the form of preliminary ANZ Business Confidence numbers. Unlike Consumer Confidence, this has already recovered back to above pre-pandemic levels and may even go positive for the first time since 2017.
Share
