RTTN: NZ Dollar Jumps To 1-week High Against Greenback And Yen
(RTTNews) - The New Zealand dollar extended its early Asian session rally against major currencies in late trading on Friday as a rally in most Asian stocks boosted demand for riskier currencies.
Asian stock markets are mostly trading higher today with the overnight positive close on Wall Street and some encouraging earnings reports buoying up sentiment.
New Zealand's NZX 50 Index rose 17.04 points, or 0.50%, to 3412.74. Among other markets in the Asia-Pacific region, Malaysia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan are trading higher, while Shanghai is exhibiting weakness.
In economic news, New Zealand's budget deficit was slightly lower than forecast in the six months to December because of better than expected tax revenue. The operating balance deficit was at NZ$6 billion (US$4.5 billion), which was 2.8% lower than expected, the Treasury said today.
The New Zealand dollar rose to a 1-week high of 0.7639 against the greenback and 63.61 against the yen around 2:30 am ET and this may be compared to yesterday's closing values of 0.7591 and 63.25, respectively.
On the upside, the kiwi may find target levels at 0.78 against the buck and 63.80 versus the yen. At present, the NZ dollar is worth 63.56 against the yen and 0.7630 per US dollar.
Members of the Japanese central bank's policy board felt more confident of the economic recovery last month amid signs of a rebound in exports, meeting notes of the January policy meeting showed.
Bank of Japan policymakers also felt the negative effects of the removal of government subsidies would wane, lifting the economy to "a moderate recovery path."
At the January meeting, the BOJ cut its economic growth forecast for the next financial year to 1.6% from 1.8%.
The New Zealand dollar also rose to a 4-day high of 1.7805 against the euro and a 2-day high of 1.3269 against the Australian dollar at this time. On the upside, the domestic unit may target resistance levels at 1.7780 against the euro and 1.3220 against the Australian dollar.
The kiwi that closed yesterday's deals at 1.3339 against the aussie and 1.7939 versus the euro is presently quoted at 1.3280 and 1.7820, respectively.
German producer price inflation rose to 5.7% annually in January from 5.3% in December, the Federal Statistical Office said today. Economists were expecting the annual rate to ease to 5.1%.
Excluding energy, producer prices rose 4% from January 2010 annually. On a monthly comparison, the producer price index moved up 1.2%, faster than the 0.7% increase seen in December.
