The Australian and New Zealand dollars nursed hefty losses on Friday, as Sino-US trade concerns refused to fade away and their US counterpart benefited from talk of strong growth figures at home. The Aussie dollar had peeled back to $0.7386, having shed 1 percent overnight against a broadly firmer US currency.
Some of the retreat was technical as the Aussie again failed to break the $0.7484 barrier which has held since mid-June. If it ends the day at current levels it will be the seventh week in a row the Aussie has finished within a quarter cent of $0.7400. Across the Tasman, the New Zealand dollar was back at $0.6780 after encountering resistance around $0.6850/60, a level that has held solid for a whole month now. Support is seen around $0.6720 and $0.6688.
The currency was now poised for a weekly drop of 0.4 percent. New Zealand government bonds gained, sending yields 3 basis points lower at the long end of the curve. Australian government bond futures were mixed, with the three-year bond contract flat at 97.885, while the 10-year contract firmed 1.5 ticks to 97.3250. Investors were also unnerved by speculation the White House would use its truce on trade with the European Union to focus on its tariff battle with China.