NZ dollar closes little changed

The New Zealand dollar traded in a narrow range above US68c today and was strong against the Australian dollar and sterling.

By 5pm the NZ dollar was buying US68.52c, from US68.48c at 5pm yesterday. It spent most of the day trading between US68.37c and US68.57c.

According to Reuters data it climbed to US68.86c during the night, an 11-month high just above the high point reached a week or so earlier.

ANZ Institutional Bank chief foreign exchange dealer Murray Hindley said the NZ dollar broke a technical level against sterling around 41.50p and traders "climbed on that". It was 41.75p by 5pm.

"We are continuing to hold up and the Asian share markets are weaker as well," he said.

The currency was trading at the high end of recent ranges against the Australian dollar. It was at A81.85c from A81.65c at 5pm yesterday.

Despite a weak domestic fundamental backdrop, the NZ dollar had been rising on signs of improving global activity, better risk appetites and a US dollar that had been shunned, ANZ analysts said.

"Expect further shunning of local fundamentals at this point, but for how long, reasonable followers of the currency will ask."

The NZ dollar was 64.45 yen by 5pm, down from the 64.89 yesterday, but rose to 0.4795 euro from 0.4777.

The trade weighted index was 63.66 at 5pm from 63.58 yesterday.

- NZPA