By Dan Bell
The NZD has been hammered overnight dropping to its lowest level since the first week of January.
The NZD/USD opens around 0.8250 after trading to a low of 0.8221 and has been one the weakest currencies overnight.
Political gridlock in Italy has sent markets into a fresh bout of risk aversion. Yields on Italian and Spanish bonds spiked overnight while most European stock markets were down 2%.
US markets turned positive after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said the US central bank would continue its bond-buying program, arguing that the benefits still outweigh the potential risks.
US stocks are up 0.64% as I write after a choppy session.
The NZD opens at 0.8064 AUD, 0.6327 EUR, 0.5459 GBP, 75.94 JPY, 0.8477 CAD.
On the local front we get NZ Trade Balance and Visitor Arrivals at 10:45am. From Australia we get Construction Work at 1:30pm.
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Dan Bell is the senior currency strategist at HiFX in Auckland. You can contact him here
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