NZ Dollar Falls Extends Slide
02:23, 29th May 2015
(RTTNews) - The New Zealand dollar continued to be weaker in the Asian session on Friday, after data showed that business confidence in New Zealand tumbled in May.
Data from ANZ Bank showed that New Zealand's business confidence index fell markedly to 15.7 from 30.2 in the previous month. The survey showed a net 16 percent of businesses were optimistic about the general economy.
The activity outlook also declined, as the index slid to 32.6 in May from 41.3 in the preceding month.
The Fonterra's announcement of low payout to dairy farmers on Thursday, also put pressure on the currency.
Fonterra Cooperative Group, the world's largest dairy exporter, cut this season's forecast farm-gate milk price to the lowest level in eight years. It announced the farm-gate milk price forecast for the 2015/2016 season of $5.25 per kilogram of milk solids.
The weaker payout of dairy products, New Zealand's largest commodity export, is likely to expect to dent in the nation's economic growth this year.
Thursday, the NZ dollar fell 1.22 percent against the U.S. dollar, 0.96 percent against the yen and 1.11 percent against the euro.
In the Asian trading today, the NZ fell to near 2-week lows of 88.29 against the yen and 1.5349 against the euro, from yesterday's closing quotes of 88.93 and 1.5245, respectively. If the kiwi extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 87.00 against the yen and 1.58 against the euro.
Against the Australian dollar, the kiwi dropped to a 1-week low of 1.0731 from yesterday's closing value of 1.0646. On the downside, 1.09 is seen as the next support level for the kiwi.
The kiwi edged down to 0.7137 against the U.S. dollar, from yesterday's closing value of 0.7175. The kiwi may test support near the 0.70 region.
Looking ahead, Swiss KOF leading indicator for May and Eurozone M3 money supply data for April are slated for release in the European session.
In the New York session, the first quarter Canada GDP data, second estimate of U.S. GDP data for first quarter and University of Michigan's final consumer sentiment index for May are due.
At 7:00 am ET, European Central Bank board member Yves Mersch speaks at the Bulgarian Authorities 2015 IMF/World Bank Constituency Meetings, in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved