NZD/USD bulls seek a break of the key daily resistance

NZD/USD meets a critical resistance area for the start of the week.
Breas are lurking for a downside continuation while the focus stays on the theme of the relation.

Ross J Burland FXStreet

NZD/USD is starting the day flat in a quiet beginning to the week while investors concentrate on what may come of a mix of conflicting US and global data vs reflationary prospects. NZD/USD is currently trading at 0.7247 between a range of 0.732/48.

The greenback has been the focus as it edged lower against major currencies on the last trading day of the week. The report that US Retail Sales unexpectedly stalled in April due to the fears of accelerating inflation receding is a double-sided sword in that inflation is at height vs poorer data. On Friday, the Commerce Department said that Retail Sales were unchanged in April after recording a 10.7% surge in March, but this was boosted by stimulus checks.

All in all, however, investors expect another acceleration in such data as US Retail Sales because the global recovery is being priced in as inevitable as leading nations, such as the US economy, reopen and populations spend the savings they have been amassing.

Domestically, the New Zealand economy is regaining momentum as well after a soft patch over the summer months as evident in the latest electronic card spending that printed strong for April, while housing market data remained perky.

NZD/USD technical analysis

Meanwhile, from a technical perspective, the price has made a full retracement to the neckline of the M-formation.

This means that the next day or so is critical.

A break of the neckline will be highly bullish, but a correction from here will be bearish.

Author

Ross J Burland

FXStreet

Ross J Burland, born in England, UK, is a sportsman at heart. He played Rugby and Judo for his county, Kent and the South East of England Rugby team.

EUR/USD climbs to daily highs near 1.1820

EUR/USD now picks up pace and advances to the area of daily peaks north of the 1.1800 barrier at the end of the week. The pair’s decent move higher comes against the backdrop of a generalised lack of direction in the FX galaxy and the mild offered stance in the US Dollar.

GBP/USD trims losses, retests 1.3460

After briefly challenging its key 200-day SMA near 1.3440, GBP/USD now manages to regain some balance and revisit the 1.3460 zone on Friday. Cable’s pullback comes as the selling pressure on the Greenback gathers traction, reigniting some recovery in the risk-linked space.

Gold flirts with four-week highs past $5,200

Gold extends its rebound, climbing for a third consecutive session and pushing back above the $5,200 mark per troy ounce on Friday. The move higher continues to draw support from lingering geopolitical tensions and the ongoing uncertainty surrounding US trade policy, both of which are keeping safe-haven demand firmly in play.

Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple consolidate with short-term cautious bullish bias

Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple are consolidating near key technical areas on Friday, showing mild signs of stabilization after recent volatility. BTC holds above $67,000 despite mild losses so far this week, while ETH hovers around $2,000 after a rejection near its upper consolidation boundary.

Breaking: US and Israel attack Iran, risk aversion to sweep global markets

Early Saturday, United States (US) President Donald Trump announced that the US had begun “major combat operations” in Iran, following Israel’s pre-emptive missile attacks against Tehran.

Starknet unveils strkBTC, shielded Bitcoin transactions on Ethereum Layer 2

Starknet, the Ethereum Layer 2 network developed by StarkWare, today announced strkBTC, a wrapped Bitcoin asset that introduces optional shielding while preserving full DeFi composability.