NZD/USD refreshes multi-month top above 0.6900 amid risk-on markets

NZD/USD refreshes intraday high, bulls eye 20-month high flashed last week.
NZ Trade Minister O'Connor says strong NZD is always a concern.
Vaccine news backs the buyers even as virus woes bother US states.

Anil Panchal FXStreet

NZD/USD gains 0.10% intraday, to currently around 0.6915, after refreshing the highest level since March 26, 2019 during Tuesday’s Asian session. In doing so, the kiwi pair offered a knee-jerk reaction to the trade-negative comments from New Zealand’s Trade Minister Damien O'Connor. The reason could be traced from the market’s optimism backed by the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine news.

Vaccine optimism dominates…

New Zealand Trade Minister O’Connor conveyed worries for the recently surging New Zealand (NZD), due to the economy’s trade-oriented nature. Even so, nothing specific could be found for the kiwi dollar and hence traders concentrated on the vaccine hopes for immediate direction.

Read: NZ Trade Minister O'Connor: Strong NZD is always a concern

Not only Moderna’s 94.5% effective vaccine, as per the latest trial results but news that Johnson and Johnson also begin the late-stage trials on its two-dose vaccine favor the market’s trading sentiment off-late. It should also be noted that Pfizer-BioNtech earlier rolled out a 90% success rate for their vaccine trials and boosted hopes that the world will be able to conquer the covid.

Amid these plays, New Zealand’s NZX 50 prints mild losses while shares from Japan and Australia print gains by press time. Further, the US stock futures also struggle for a clear direction as the COVID-19 resurgence in America put brakes on the recovery plans.

Looking forward, risk catalysts will be the key amid a lack of major data/events from New Zealand. Against this backdrop, the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) said,

“Kiwi is higher overnight, with risk appetite surging after more positive vaccine news, which saw US equities jump to near-record highs. Vaccine deployment won’t all be plain sailing, and things will still feel pretty tough as we go into 2021 given the lags in achieving inoculation and immunity, the still raging global pandemic, and the more pressing near-term issue of how NZ copes with a summer without tourists and a reversal in the fiscal impulse, all of which we need to overcome before a vaccine becomes widely available. But for now it’s sentiment driving markets and in that environment the risk is NZD goes higher.”

Technical analysis

The early 2019 top near 0.6940/45 lures NZD/USD buyers, for now. On the contrary, the monthly support line near 0.6860 offers immediate support.

Additional important levels

Overview
Today last price	0.6913
Today Daily Change	9 pips
Today Daily Change %	0.13%
Today daily open	0.6904

Trends
Daily SMA20	0.6728
Daily SMA50	0.6672
Daily SMA100	0.6639
Daily SMA200	0.6408

Levels
Previous Daily High	0.6904
Previous Daily Low	0.6841
Previous Weekly High	0.6915
Previous Weekly Low	0.6783
Previous Monthly High	0.6726
Previous Monthly Low	0.6546
Daily Fibonacci 38.2%	0.688
Daily Fibonacci 61.8%	0.6865
Daily Pivot Point S1	0.6862
Daily Pivot Point S2	0.682
Daily Pivot Point S3	0.6799
Daily Pivot Point R1	0.6925
Daily Pivot Point R2	0.6946
Daily Pivot Point R3	0.6988

Author

Anil Panchal

FXStreet

Anil Panchal has nearly 15 years of experience in tracking financial markets. With a keen interest in macroeconomics, Anil aptly tracks global news/updates and stays well-informed about the global financial moves and their implications.

GBP/USD surges to multi-day peaks past 1.3250

GBP/USD leaves behind Friday’s small pullback and advances past 1.3250 level, or five-day highs, on Monday. Cable’s upside follows extra losses in the Greenback, while traders continue to assess the geopolitical front and upcoming key events.

EUR/USD softens to near 1.1400 as ECB tightening bets fade

The EUR/USD pair trades with mild losses around 1.1415 during the early Asian session on Tuesday. The Euro softens against the US Dollar as traders reduce their bets on the European Central Bank rate hikes this year.

Gold tumbles 1.5% to fresh seven-month lows below $3,950

Gold remains under strong selling pressure for the second straight day early Tuesday, refreshing seven-month lows below $3,950. Renewed US-Iran hostilities over the weekend cast doubts over the sustainability of the peace deal. This, along with elevated expectations for Fed rate hikes, offers some support to the US Dollar and undermines the bullion.

Bitcoin stalls at $60K as buyer conviction fades, Strategy authorizes BTC sales

Bitcoin is trading around the $60,000 level on Monday after a sharp decline last week. With the top crypto struggling to recover, analysts suggest the market remains firmly in defensive territory as investors await stronger signs of demand.

Just like Fed, is BoJ’s independence under threat?

When talking about central bank independence, most of the focus has been on Donald Trump’s pressure on the Federal Reserve. But a similar story, a quieter one for now, seems to be happening on the other side of the Pacific: Japan’s government may be testing the Bank of Japan’s independence.

Kevin Warsh isn't expected to say much in Sintra: That's exactly why markets will listen

Financial markets could find an important catalyst in the enchanting, fairytale-like landscape of Sintra this week. The ECB Forum will, as it does every year, gather the crème de la crème of central banks. The new boss at the Fed, who has clearly said that the Fed should stop explaining everything, will need to talk – and traders should listen.