02:21 NZD/USD: Trades Heavy In Asia, After The Retail Sales Data Sydney February 15. The Kiwi trades towards the base of a 0.7846/0.7906 range in Wellington, weighed down by the soft retail sales this morning. The data showed a rise of just 0.3% q/q, against median forecasts of a 0.6% gain. This joins the soft PMI data yesterday and the weakening housing sector, which all suggest that last year"s rate rises are biting, which is good news for the RBNZ. The immediate response to the data was muted, but selling came in later in the morning from the large multi-national banks, believed to be fund based, which is likely to continue offshore. Dealers report moderate volume, with no liquidity issues and expect further range trading, with a negative bias into the European open. Initial support comes in at Wednesday"s 0.7815 low and resistance at this morning"s 0.7900/10 high. The Kiwi has struggled above 0.7900 in he last few months and unless there is a major USD sell off, or surge in the equity markets, the Nikkei is currently down 1.49%, the downside looks the weak one. The Kiwi trades 0.7850/55.
Don
