KEY POINTS:
As risk aversion eased around the globe, the New Zealand dollar climbed further away from the six-year low below US52c it slid to on Friday.
By 8am today the kiwi was buying US54.51c from US53.20c at 5pm yesterday.
The US dollar fell against the euro and a basket of currencies as risk aversion eased after the US government agreed to inject US$20 billion ($38.3 billion) of new capital to rescue troubled Citigroup.
Stock markets jumped across the globe in a sign of higher risk appetite, which has been linked recently to US dollar weakness, even as investors remain cautious due to ongoing concerns about a global recession.
The NZ dollar was stronger against the Japanese currency at 52.83 yen by 8am from 50.70 at the local close. The kiwi also edged up against the euro to be at 0.4227 by the local open.
But against the Australian dollar, the NZ dollar continued its six-week slide, getting down to its lowest level in nearly two months around A83.65c. By 8am the kiwi was slightly stronger at A83.97c but still well down on yesterday's local close of A84.80c.
The trade weighted index was 55.35 at 8am, up from 54.63 at 5pm.
- NZPA
