The NZDUSD opens higher at 0.8665 this morning.
The USD and global equities both weakened as the markets await confirmation from the European Central Bank that it will announce further stimulatory measures. This helped to push the NZDUSD up to a high of 0.8673, while the NZDEUR hit 0.6324 - a 7-week high.
The GBP fell after the Bank of England surprised investors by stating it has no plans for any near-term monetary tightening - the markets had expected interest may rise within the next 12 months. The NZDGBP pushed up to a 1-month high of 0.5170.
Domestically the main focus will be on the 2pm Budget release. It is expected to be steady as she goes with no major surprises.
Global equity markets were mostly lower on the day - Dow -0.6%, Nikkei -0.1%, Shanghai -0.1%, FTSE +0.1%, DAX -0.0%
Gold prices gained 0.9% to USD$1305. Oil prices increased by 0.8%.
The current indicative mid-rates are:
NZDUSD 0.8665
NZDEUR 0.6320
NZDGBP 0.5165
NZDJPY 88.30
NZDAUD 0.9245
NZDCAD 0.9435
Business NZ Manufacturing Index will be released at 10:30am, followed by the Annual Budget release at 2:00pm.
German GDP and US core CPI, weekly unemployment claims, & Philly Fed Manufacturing Index all hit the tapes tonight.
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Dan Bell is the senior currency strategist at HiFX in Auckland. You can contact him here »
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