NZD/USD nears 20-day MA support, investors await Fed speakers

• NZD/USD is reporting marginal gains in Asia  but is holding above the upward sloping (bullish) 20-day moving average (MA) of 0.6752.
• New Zealand reported a bigger-than-expected trade deficit earlier today.
• The 20-day MA could be convincingly breached if the Fed officials, scheduled to speak this week, sound hawkish.

The NZD/USD pair is currently trading at 0.6761, having clocked a high of 0.6777 earlier today.

The marginal losses are likely associated with the disappointment arising out of the bigger-than-expected New Zealand’s October trade deficit of NZD 1,295 million.

The imports rose NZD 6.15 billion, beating the estimated figure of NZD 5.74 billion. The pick up in imports is usually considered a sign of rising domestic demand. In New Zealand’s case, however, the rise in imports is largely due to record oil import bill.

Further, exports of NZD 4.86 billion, narrowly missed the estimate of NZD 4.88 billion. As a result, the kiwi dollar is on the defensive in Asia.

The downside, however, is being capped near the 20-day MA of 0.6752, possibly due to the overnight gains in the US stocks.

The bullish MA support would be convincingly breached if the Fed’s Powell and Co. put more emphasis on the need for above-neutral interest rate policy. It is worth noting that the markets are way behind the curve. Therefore, the American dollar could rise sharply on hawkish Fed-speak.

NZD/USD Technical Levels