New Zealand Dollar holds ground despite softer China’s CPI data

The post New Zealand Dollar: Rate support constrained by Oil drag – OCBC appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Christopher Wong highlights that the New Zealand Dollar (NZD) has strengthened after a hawkish Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) rate hike, but higher Oil prices are capping gains. With the RBNZ starting a tightening cycle and growth expected to rebound in 2H26, Wong sees AUD/NZD nearing a peak, though a sustained decline needs stronger New Zealand growth and a more favourable energy backdrop. Hawkish RBNZ meets energy headwinds “The NZD strengthened after a hawkish RBNZ rate hike, though gains were capped by renewed terms-of-trade headwinds from higher oil prices. The RBNZ raised the Official Cash Rate by 25bps to 2.50%, delivering its first hike since May 2023. Forward guidance was hawkish but data-dependent, with the central bank noting that further rate increases may be needed to return inflation to target.” “Domestic data point to a rebound in GDP growth in 2H26 as the dr

The post New Zealand Dollar extends rebound after RBNZ hike appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. NZD/USD advances on Thursday and trades around 0.5730 at the time of writing, up 0.56% on the day. The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) continues to strengthen after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) delivered a more hawkish-than-expected monetary policy decision, providing ongoing support to the currency. As widely expected, the RBNZ raised its Official Cash Rate by 25 basis points to 2.5% at its July meeting. More importantly, the central bank indicated that further withdrawal of monetary stimulus may be needed to ensure inflation returns sustainably to target. According to the RBNZ’s projections, inflation is expected to peak at 3.9% in the second quarter before gradually easing back toward the 2% midpoint of the target range by mid-2027. DBS noted that the unanimous vote in favor of the rate hike marks a notable shift from May’s split decision and reflects the central bank’s renewed commit

The post New Zealand Dollar: Firm as RBNZ signals more tightening – DBS appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Philip Wee from DBS Group Research reports NZD/USD is holding firm above 0.57 after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand unanimously voted to lift the Official Cash Rate by 25 bps to 2.50%, a shift from May’s split decision. The RBNZ still sees policy as accommodative, signals likely further stimulus reduction, and projects inflation easing back toward its 2% midpoint by mid-2027. Kiwi supported by hawkish RBNZ “NZD/USD is firm above 0.57 after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand countered doubts regarding its inflation-fighting resolve.” “The vote to lift the official 25 bps hike to 2.50% was unanimous, which marked a clear departure from May’s 3-3 split to hold rates.” “With the OCR level remaining accommodative, the committee signalled that ‘further reduction in monetary stimulus is likely’.” “RBNZ projected that inflation will peak at 3.9% in 2Q26, slow to 3.3% in 3Q26, before declin

The post New Zealand Dollar advances above 0.5700 on RBNZ hawkish stance appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. The NZD/USD pair gains momentum to around 0.5735 during the early European session on Thursday. The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) strengthens against the US Dollar (USD) on a hawkish interest rate hike from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ). The US weekly Initial Jobless Claims report will be published later on Thursday. As widely expected, the RBNZ raised its Official Cash Rate (OCR) by 25 basis points (bps) to 2.50% from 2.25% at its July meeting on Wednesday. The central bank signalled that additional tightening may be needed, as policymakers sought to ensure inflation returns to target despite easing energy prices and an economy that is only gradually regaining momentum. However, softer Chinese inflation data might cap the upside for the China-proxy Kiwi. Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China on Thursday showed that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) climb

The post New Zealand Dollar: RBNZ tightening supports upside – ABN AMRO appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. ABN AMRO’s Georgette Boele reports that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand lifted its policy rate by 25 bp to 2.5% and signalled more tightening is likely. Despite some easing in energy prices, the bank sees persistent inflation pressures and scope for further reduction in stimulus. With markets pricing additional hikes, ABN AMRO expects modest upside for the New Zealand Dollar versus the US Dollar. RBNZ hikes and signals further tightening “This week, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand raised its policy rate by 25bp to 2.5%.” “It also said that, with inflation still above target and economic activity expected to strengthen, further reduction in monetary stimulus is likely to be needed to bring inflation back to the 2% target midpoint.” “Future OCR decisions will depend on incoming data, price-setting behaviour and the strength of economic activity, and how these factors affect medium

The post New Zealand Dollar: RBNZ hike underpins kiwi – ING appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. ING’s Francesco Pesole reports that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) raised rates to 2.50%, delivering a more hawkish message than expected and signalling further tightening is likely. He notes consensus within the Committee, sees another hike around September or October, but stresses dovish risks later in 2026 and maintains a 0.59 NZD/USD target by year-end. Further tightening signalled by rbnz “The Reserve Bank of New Zealand hiked rates by 25bp to 2.50% today, in line with our call. The accompanying message had a more hawkish tone overall than we had anticipated, though. The statement reads that further hikes “appear likely at upcoming meetings”, even if their timing is “highly uncertain”.” “There is still plenty of uncertainty around the inflation outlook, but the Bank stressed how non-tradable inflation had been persistent even before the war.” “We had suspected a close vote spli

The post New Zealand Dollar: RBNZ hawkish path supports currency – BBH appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Brown Brothers Harriman’s (BBH) Elias Haddad reports that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) delivered a 25 bps hike to 2.50%, largely priced in, triggering an New Zealand Dollar (NZD) rally before gains were trimmed by Middle East tensions. Haddad highlights that the RBNZ sees further Official Cash Rate (OCR) increases as likely, has room to normalize towards a neutral 2.2–4.1% range, and markets price nearly 100 bps of tightening over the next year. Hawkish RBNZ and neutral OCR range “The RBNZ raised the Official Cash rate (OCR) by 25bps to 2.50%, the first hike in three years, and indicated that “further OCR increases appear likely at upcoming meetings.” The RBNZ did not disclose the Committee’s vote split but indicated that the decision to increase the OCR was reached by consensus.” “The RBNZ estimated neutral range is between 2.2% and 4.1%. The swaps curve implies nearly

The post New Zealand Dollar gives away gains amid renewed tensions in the Middle East appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. The New Zealand Dollar’s (NZD) rally against the US Dollar (USD) has been short-lived, as the pair returned to sub-0.5700 levels during the European session after being rejected at the 0.5725 area earlier in the day. Market concerns about the status of the US-Iran ceasefire have hammered risk appetite, offsetting the positive Kiwi’s reaction to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s (RBNZ) hawkish hike. US President Donald Trump affirmed earlier on Wednesday that the ceasefire is no longer in effect, and that, in his opinion, the memorandum of understanding “is over,” although he added that negotiators can “keep talking if they want.” These remarks come after the rival countries exchanged attacks earlier on the day and the US revoked Iran’s authorization to export Crude. The resumption of the hostilities has boosted US Treasury yields, sending the safe-haven US Dollar h