The New Zealand dollar edged lower in quiet trading with little new economic data released and many US traders out of the market as they take a long weekend holiday.
The kiwi slipped to 77.54 US cents at 8am in Wellington, from 77.87 cents at 5pm yesterday. The trade-weighted index weakened to 76.92 from 77.01 yesterday
The New Zealand dollar started the week higher after the key US non-farm payrolls report at the end of last week showed employers in the world's largest economy added less jobs than many traders expected, weighing on the greenback. However with a lack of new economic data overnight and many US traders enjoying a long-weekend holiday heading into the Nov. 11 Veterans Day public holiday, the market struggled for direction.
"It has been a relatively quiet 24-hours of trading for the NZD/USD," Kymberly Martin, Bank of New Zealand senior market strategist, said in a note. "It was never looking to be an exciting night, with little on the data agenda, and the US likely in long-weekend mode ahead of today's Veterans Day holiday.
"In the absence of significant data releases or news flow the US dollar index sidled sideways overnight, before making a push higher in the early hours of this morning."
