The NZDUSD opens at 0.7507 (mid-rate) this morning.
The big mover over the past 24hrs has been the EUR with better than expected economic data increasing the chances that
the European Central Bank (ECB) will be in a position to wind down its quantitative easing (QE) program later in the
year.
US economic data releases delivered mixed results for the USD with better than expected pending home sales countered by
a larger than expected fall in the Chicago PMI.
Pending home sales for the month of June bounced back from May’s shock fall with the National Association of Realtors
report showing sales were up 1.5% to 110.2 in June, after falling 0.7% to 108.6 in May. The index had been forecast to
rise 1%.
The Chicago business barometer plummeted to 58.9 in July after peaking at 65.7 in June. The fall in business activity
was greater than expected with economists forecasting the index to drop to 61.0. A breakdown of the data showed new
orders index fell by 11.6 points to 60.3 while the production index lost 6.9 points to 60.8.
Euro-zone inflation for the month of July came in unchanged from June’s 1.3% reading according to the Eurostat flash
data report. The result was in line with expectations.
Germany’s retail sales for the month of June surged 1.1% following May’s 0.5% increase. The result was well ahead of
expectations with economists forecasting sales to inch up by 0.1%.
In the absence of any NZ economic data releases investors are likely to turn their attention to this afternoons Reserve
Bank of Australia’s monthly monetary policy statement.
Global equity markets remain mixed - Dow +0.43%, S 500 +0.02%, FTSE +0.05%, DAX -0.37%, CAC -0.73%, Nikkei -0.17%, Shanghai +0.61%.
Gold prices are unchanged trading at $1,268 an ounce .WTI Crude Oil prices have edged higher, up 0.2% at $49.81 a
barrel.
ends