Kiwi dollar gains strength from weak USD

Published: 12:08PM Monday August 03, 2009 Source: ONE News / NZPA / Reuters

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The New Zealand dollar set a 10-month high on Monday, hitting 66.65 US cents before dropping back to 66.40 before midday.

The US dollar hit a year low in the weekend, falling against a basket of currencies on the back of better than expected gross domestic product data.

US GDP fell at an annual pace of 1% in the second quarter - a big improvement over the 6.4% contraction in the first three months of the year.

Bad signals from economic reports and poor earnings tend to help the US dollar as investors seek safety, often in US government debt, while good news and stronger equities usually correspond with a drop in the greenback's value.

Higher oil prices and steady global stock markets have also boosted risk appetite.

Market analyst Baden Carter believes the Australian dollar may be dragging the Kiwi up to some extent as well.

"Also, we're a relatively high yield environment in New Zealand compared to other parts of the world, so Asian investors who seem to be driving this (surge) this morning are looking for yield in the face of no yield in their markets," he says.

The Kiwi has been steadily gaining strength over the last few months and broke through the 66-cent mark on July 23.

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