NZD/USD – Kiwi Higher, New Zealand Manufacturing Report Next

NZD/USD has posted considerable gains on Tuesday, as the pair is trading at 0.6660 in the North American session. In economic news, US employment numbers were positive, as JOLTS Job Openings jumped to 4.61 million, well above expectations. New Zealand will release the Business NZ Manufacturing Index later in the day.

The US posted a host of soft numbers last week, as last week’s employment and service sector numbers all missed expectations. ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI, dropped to 53.2 points in January, its worst showing since March 2014. Unemployment claims rose unexpectedly to 285 thousand, and the week wrapped up with a dismal Nonfarm Payrolls report, with a small gain of 151 thousand. The markets had expected a much stronger gain of 189 thousand. No less worrying, this figure marked a sharp drop from the previous reading of 292 thousand. The soft labor data continued on Monday, as the Labor Market Conditions Index posted an unimpressive reading of 0.4 points, marking a four-month low. However, there was good news on Tuesday, as JOLTS Job Openings, an important employment indicator, jumped to 5.61 million, compared to 5.41 million. This marked the indicator’s strongest showing in five months.

The New Zealand dollar posted strong gains last week, but remains at low levels. NZD/USD endured a dreadful month of January, losing close to 400 points against its US counterpart. The New Zealand economy has been badly hit by the Chinese slowdown, as the Asian giant is New Zealand’s second largest trade partner. Chinese indicators have painted a grim picture, as Chinese GDP is on a downward trend and recent manufacturing PMIs have pointed to a slowdown in the Chinese manufacturing sector, resulting in lower demand for New Zealand exports.

Tuesday (Feb. 9)

• 6:00 US NFIB Small Business Index. Estimate 94.6 points. Actual 93.9 points
• 10:00 US JOLTS Job Openings. Estimate 5.41M. Actual 5.61M
• 10:00 US Wholesale Inventories. Estimate -0.1%. Actual -0.1%

Upcoming Key Events

Wednesday (Feb. 10)

• 10:00 Fed Chair Janet Yellen Testifies
• 16:30 New Zealand Business NZ Manufacturing Index

*Key releases are highlighted in bold

*All release times are EST

NZD/USD for Tuesday, February 9, 2016

NZD/USD February 9 at 11:20 EST

Open: 0.6613 Low: 0.6562 High: 0.6668 Close: 0.6661

NZD/USD Technical

• NZD/USD lost ground in the Asian and European session, but has reversed directions and has posted considerable gains in North American trade
• 0.6605 is providing support. It was tested earlier in the day
• There is resistance at 0.6738.

Further levels in both directions:

• Below: 0.6605, 0.6449, 0.6344 and 0.6233
• Above: 0.6738, 0.6897 and 0.7011

OANDA’s Open Positions Ratio

The NZD/USD ratio is close to an even split of long and short positions, which is indicative of trader bias towards the pair continuing to move lower.

This article is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Corporation or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. Leveraged trading is high risk and not suitable for all. You could lose all of your deposited funds.