SYDNEY/WELLINGTON: The Australian and New Zealand dollars hovered near three-week highs on Friday, buoyed by broad weakness in their US counterpart and an upbeat Australian job report, putting them on track for hefty gains this week.
The Australian dollar nudged lower at $0.7773, from $0.7802 early, but was still up 1.4 percent this week in a rare consecutive week of gains. It has added 2.4 percent in April which, if sustained, would be the largest monthly gain in a year.
Resistance was found at a three-week peak of $0.7823 set in the last session.
Underpinning the Aussie was a surprisingly strong local employment report on Thursday and another round of underwhelming US data. Lacklustre housing data suggested the economic momentum may not be strong enough for the Federal Reserve to start raising interest rates as early as June, as some had wagered.
The Aussie also held most gains versus the yen at 92.65 , from Thursday's low of 91.28, while it found some resistance against the euro. The common currency trimmed losses to A$1.3825, having plumbed a two-year trough just below A$1.3700 on Thursday.
The euro was off all-time lows against the kiwi at NZ$1.4067 , but remained vulnerable. It has tumbled nearly 10 percent this year.
Versus the US dollar, the New Zealand dollar slipped to $0.7646, from a three-week high of $0.7698 on Thursday.
Still, the kiwi held most of its gains after climbing 1 percent the previous day. It is poised to end the week 1.7 percent higher.
"Despite softer signs on the New Zealand commodity price front, relatively high NZD yields could keep the NZD elevated for longer than would typically be the case," ANZ analysts said in a note.
The kiwi's latest rally has surprised some analysts who expect the kiwi to weaken towards $0.7000 later this year when US interest rates begin to rise.
The kiwi held above technical support at $0.7580, its 100-day moving average, but initial resistance was seen at $0.7700 following its failure to break above $0.7698. A break above $0.7700 would open the door to a rise towards $0.7900.
New Zealand government bonds edged up, sending yields 1.5 basis points lower across the board.
Australian government bond futures were mixed, with the three-year bond contract off 1 tick at 98.230, having touched a one-month low of 98.210. The 10-year contract added 1 tick to 97.6400.
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