New Zealand Dollar retreats as USD strength overshadows ANZ sentiment gains
- The New Zealand Dollar slips despite improving business sentiment in the latest ANZ survey.
- Markets still expect a 25 bps rate cut from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand in November.
- A firmer US Dollar caps Kiwi gains ahead of the ANZ Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence release.
NZD/USD trades around 0.5740 on Thursday at the time of writing, down 0.37% on the day, after briefly approaching a key resistance area at 0.5800 on Wednesday. The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) retreats despite a relatively firm tone in the medium term, supported by signs of improving economic confidence in New Zealand.
The October ANZ Business Outlook survey showed a notable rebound in sentiment, with Business Confidence rising to 58.1, its highest level in eight months, from 49.6 in September. Activity Outlook also reached a six-month high at 44.6, while Past Activity, a good proxy for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth, held steady at 5. These figures confirm that “green shoots are emerging,” BBH analysts noted.
However, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) remains on track to ease policy further. Markets assign a 90% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut to 2.25% at the November 26 meeting, according to BBH. Policymakers have emphasized that underlying inflation is now within the 1%-3% target band, allowing room for additional monetary accommodation.
The New Zealand Dollar continues to face headwinds from a stronger US Dollar (USD), buoyed by renewed optimism following the trade truce between Washington and Beijing and by the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) cautious but firm tone.
Market focus now turns to the release of the New Zealand ANZ Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence Index for October later in the day, which could influence near-term monetary policy expectations.
New Zealand Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of New Zealand Dollar (NZD) against listed major currencies today. New Zealand Dollar was the strongest against the Japanese Yen.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.32% | 0.31% | 0.88% | 0.31% | 0.31% | 0.35% | 0.29% | |
| EUR | -0.32% | -0.01% | 0.59% | -0.01% | -0.01% | 0.03% | -0.03% | |
| GBP | -0.31% | 0.01% | 0.59% | -0.00% | 0.00% | 0.03% | -0.03% | |
| JPY | -0.88% | -0.59% | -0.59% | -0.59% | -0.59% | -0.58% | -0.65% | |
| CAD | -0.31% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.59% | 0.01% | 0.03% | -0.03% | |
| AUD | -0.31% | 0.01% | 0.00% | 0.59% | -0.01% | 0.03% | -0.01% | |
| NZD | -0.35% | -0.03% | -0.03% | 0.58% | -0.03% | -0.03% | -0.04% | |
| CHF | -0.29% | 0.03% | 0.03% | 0.65% | 0.03% | 0.00% | 0.04% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the New Zealand Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent NZD (base)/USD (quote).