What a difference positive sentiment makes to market mood. The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) has pushed up from the weekly open of 0.6260 as risk products rose across the board. Positive US data and Shanghai restrictions have also boosted investor appetite with the cross clocking 0.6360 earlier today. US Retail Sales printed at 0.9% m/m for April slightly lower than the 1.0% predicted but a healthy upwardly revised March number from 0.5% to 1.4% highlighted improved consumer spending. This data suggests we should see decent growth in the second quarter sweeping aside earlier speak of recession risks. Industrial Production also published stronger at 1.1% in April vs 0.4%, the 4th straight monthly gain. The NZ annual Budget is tomorrow at 2pm NZT which doesn’t usually affect movement in the NZD much historically. On the chart, technically the pair is still trading in the bearish channel decline from the 0.7030 high posted in early April. A break above 0.6500 and the 30-day moving average would signal a trend change.
Exchange Rates:
The current interbank midrate is: NZDUSD 0.6364
The interbank range this week has been: NZDUSD 0.6226- 0.6373