New Zealand dollar under pressure, Chinese PMIs next

• Chicago PMI expected to decelerate
• China releases PMIs on Saturday

The New Zealand dollar is in negative territory on Friday. In the European session, NZD/USD is trading at 0.6308, down 0.37%.

The US dollar has hit a rough patch lately and retreated against most of the majors. The New Zealand dollar has been full marks, climbing some 400 basis points over the past five weeks. The Federal Reserve meeting earlier this month has boosted risk appetite, as Fed Chair Powell jumped on the rate-cut bandwagon, signalling that the Fed is finally done raising interest rates.

Powell pencilled in three rate cuts next year while the markets have priced in double that. Fed members have urged caution, but the markets remain exuberant and have priced in an initial rate cut in March. Inflation is getting closer to the 2% target and with the labour market in good shape, it looks like the Fed could guide the US economy to a soft landing and avoid a recession.

Chinese PMIs next

New Zealand doesn’t release any tier-1 events until mid-January, but Chinese PMIs, which will be released on Saturday, could have an impact on the direction of the New Zealand dollar. China is New Zealand’s largest export market and the PMIs will provide a report card on the health of China’s service and manufacturing sectors. China’s recovery has been patchy and the slowdown has resulted in deflation in the world’s number two economy. The manufacturing sector has been stuck in contraction for most of this year and non-manufacturing expansion has been steadily falling and has stagnated over the past two months. The Manufacturing PMI is expected at 49.5 and the Services PMI at 50.3.

The US releases Chicago PMI, an important business barometer, later today. The PMI shocked in November with a reading of 55.8, which marked the first expansion after fourteen straight months of contraction. The upward spike may have been a one-time occurrence due to the end of the United Auto Workers strike as activity rose in the auto manufacturing industry. The consensus estimate for December stands at 51.0, which would point to weak expansion.

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NZD/USD Technical

• NZD/USD tested resistance at 0.6345 in the Asian session but has reversed directions. Below, there is support at 0.6031
• There is resistance at 0.6150 and 0.6195

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