The New Zealand dollar strengthened against the other major currencies in the Asian session on Friday, after data showed that business confidence in New Zealand bounced back in October.
Data from ANZ Bank showed that business confidence in New Zealand bounced back in October, as its index moved back into positive territory with a score of +10.5. That follows the -18.9 reading in September.
The sub-index for personal business activity jumped to +23.7, up from +16.7 in the previous month.
Signs of recovery in dairy prices increased optimism among dairy firms in October.
Thursday, the NZ dollar held steady against its major rivals.
In the Asian trading, the NZ dollar rose to 2-day highs of 81.51 against the yen, 0.6738 against the U.S. dollar and 1.0539 against the Australian dollar, from yesterday’s closing quotes of 81.05, 0.6692 and 1.0565, respectively. If the kiwi extends its uptrend, it is likely to find resistance around 83.00 against the yen, 0.69 against the greenback and 1.04 against the aussie.
Against the euro, the kiwi advanced to 1.6303 from yesterday’s closing value of 1.6396. The kiwi may test resistance around the 1.61 area.
Looking ahead, Japan housing starts and construction orders data for September is due to be release at 1:00 am ET. Subsequently, Bank of Japan’s semi annual outlook report is slated for release in the pre-European session at 2:00 am ET.
In the European session, German retail sales data for September, Swiss KOF leading indicator for October, Eurozone unemployment rate for September and flash estimate of eurozone CPI for October are set to be published.
At 5:00 am ET, Bank of England’s Executive Director, Financial Stability Strategy and Risk, Alex Brazier is expected to speak at the Presentation at Stress Testing and Macro-prudential Regulation: A Trans-Atlantic Assessment in London.
In the New York session, U.S. personal income and spending data for September, the University of Michigan’s final U.S. consumer sentiment index for October, U.S. Chicago PMI for October, U.S. Baker Hughes rig count data and Canada GDP data for August are set to be announced.
At 10:00 am ET, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President John Williams will deliver a speech titled “Measuring the Natural Rate of Interest” at the Brookings Institution, in Washington DC.
Subsequently, at 11:25 am ET, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Esther George is expected to speak on “Federal Reserve Structure” before the City Age “The New American City” Conference, in Kansas City.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com