NZ Dollar Strengthens After Dairy Prices Slightly Lift

(RTTNews) - The New Zealand dollar strengthened against other major currencies in the Asian session on Wednesday, after dairy prices soared up at the latest Global Dairy Trade auction held overnight.

New Zealand's Global Dairy Trade Index rose 0.5 percent, beating estimates at minus 1 percent.

Meanwhile, the price of Whole Milk Powder is down 1.8 percent, and the price of Skim Milk Powder is down 1.3 percent.

In economic news, data from Statistics New Zealand showed that the producer price inputs in New Zealand were up 0.9 percent on quarter in the fourth quarter of 2023. That exceeded forecasts for an increase of 0.4 percent but was down from 1.2 percent in the previous three months.

PPI outputs were up 0.7 percent on quarter, also topping estimates for 0.4 percent and down from 0.8 percent in the three months prior.

Traders remain cautious and seemed reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of the minutes of the U.S. Fed's latest monetary policy meeting later in the day. The Fed may provide additional insight into the outlook for interest rates.

The NZ dollar started rising against the euro and the U.S. dollar from February 14, 2023. Against the Australian dollar and the yen, the kiwi started rising from February 16 and February 13, respectively.

In the Asian trading today, the NZ dollar appreciated to a 9-year high of 92.82 against the yen, from yesterday's closing value of 92.48. The kiwi may test resistance near the 94.00 region.

Against the U.S. dollar and the euro, the kiwi advanced to more than a 1-month high of 0.6191 and more than a 1-1/2-month high of 1.7472 from Tuesday's closing quotes of 0.6167 and 1.7528, respectively. If the kiwi extends its uptrend, it is likely to find resistance around 0.63 against the greenback, 1.73 against the euro

The kiwi edged up to 1.0607 against the Australian dollar, from yesterday's closing value of 1.0626. On the upside, 1.05 is seen as the next resistance level for the kiwi.

Looking ahead, Switzerland's M3 money supply data for January and the Confederation British Industry's Industrial Trends Survey results for February are due to be released in the European session.

At 5:00 am ET, Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel attends the Cabinet meeting on the Annual Economic Report.

At 5:25 am ET, European Central Bank board member Edouard Fernandez-Bollo speaks at an event organized in association with the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU in Ghent, Belgium.

In the New York session, U.S. mortgage approvals data, Canada new housing price index for January, Eurozone flash consumer confidence for February and U.S. Redbook reports are slated for release.

At 8:00 am ET, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic will give welcome remarks before the Airports Council International CFO Summit hosted by the Regional Economic Information Network (REIN) of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, in U.S.

At 9:00 am ET, Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Swati Dhingra is scheduled to deliver a speech to Market News in London, U.K.

At 2:00 pm ET, Federal Open Market Committee will issue minutes from its meeting of Jan 30- Jan 31.