The New Zealand dollar declined ahead of employment figures for the fourth quarter, which are expected to show tepid growth in jobs and a falling unemployment rate.
The New Zealand dollar fell to 84.18 US cents from 84.45cents in Asia yesterday. The trade-weighted index declined to 76.25 from 76.41.
The Household Labour Force Survey, released later this morning, will show jobs grew 0.4 per cent in the fourth quarter after a similar sized decline in the previous three months, according to a Reuters survey.
The jobless rate probably fell to 7.1 per cent from 7.3 per cent. The report follows figures on Tuesday showing only modest wage and labour market growth, giving the central bank no cause to rush to raise interest rates.
"The data is notoriously 'noisy'," said Kymberly Martin, a strategist at Bank of New Zealand. "Any positive surprise would likely see the currency re-test recent highs at US$0.8480, though there is strong resistance at this level."
