The Australian and New Zealand dollars crawled upward on Thursday after minutes of the US Federal Reserve signalled a likely slow rise in interest rates once lift-off begins. In early trade, the Australian dollar rose to $0.7144 from $0.7097 as investors favoured risk assets such as equities. Resistance was found around $0.7160, with support at $0.7070.
Again, the Aussie proved resilient to sliding commodity prices, particularly iron ore, Australia's top export earner. It held near three-month peaks against the euro, which could come under renewed pressure after the European Central Bank later in the session releases the minutes of its last policy meeting. There are expectations the statement will reinforce the likelihood of further easing in December.
The New Zealand dollar gained 0.7 percent on the day to $0.6515, having bounced from a seven-week trough of $0.6430 on Wednesday. However, traders expect it to remain under pressure in the long run, given the Fed minutes showed a December hike was on the cards.
"The message has been signed and sealed, now we just need it to be delivered," said Stuart Ive, Auckland-based private client manager for OM Financial. Ive expects the Kiwi to continue to grind slowly lower as the Reserve Bank of New Zealand comes under mounting pressure to cut rates further in December. New Zealand government bonds eased, sending yields 1.5 basis points higher across the curve. Australian government bond futures were a touch softer, with the three-year bond contract down 2 ticks at 97.870. The 10-year contract eased 1 tick to 97.0650, while the 20-year contract shed 2 ticks to 96.5200.
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