NZD/USD firmly holds around 0.6190s ahead of US Consumer Sentiment

The NZD/USD pair is subdued, around the 0.6190s ahead of Friday’s US economic data. The improved risk appetite on Thursday triggered the NZD/USD’s bounce from daily lows despite not good NZ GDP data.

The NZD/USD pair is about to finish Thursday’s session flat after diving towards a daily low of 0.6139. The European Central Bank (ECB) lifted rates amidst turbulent times. However, news that Swiss authorities backed Credit Suisse and major US banks stepping in to help First Republic Bank eased investors’ fears. Therefore, the NZD/USD recovered and is trading at 0.6191, a gain of 0.06%.

Wall Street finished with gains between 1.12% and 2.48%. Employment data in the United States (US), delivered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), showed that unemployment claims for the last week rose by 192K below estimates of 205K, less than the prior week’s 212K. In the meantime, housing data like Building Permits and Housing Starts came above estimates and the prior’s month data.

At the same time, the Philadelphia Fed revealed that manufacturing activity contracted at a slower rate in March. The US Dollar Index, a measure of the buck’s value against a basket of six currencies, losses 0.30%, at 104.430, a tailwind for the NZD/USD.

Earlier in the Asian session, the New Zealand Dollar (NZD) weakened on the release of the New Zealand (NZ) Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for Q4, which contracted 0.6% QoQ, and below the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) MPS projection of 0.7% expansion.

Record Q4 current account deficit, amid waning appetite for NZGBs, the NZD may face headwinds in coming weeks. A Fed hike and/or higher dot plots next week, alongside reduced financial instability, may also see markets become more positive on the USD.

The NZ economic docket is empty toward the end of the week. In monthly and annual readings, the US calendar wil feature Industrial Production for February. The MoM figures are estimated at 0.2%, above January’s 0%. In addition, the University of Michigan (UoM) Consumer Sentiment poll will update American sentiment regarding the economy and revise inflation expectations.