Dollar hovers in US74c range

The NZ dollar started the week off on a more subdued note after rising to near US75c last week.

It was knocked lower during the weekend by a recovery in the US dollar but recovered during today's session to be US74.37c at 5pm from US74.02c at 8am. It closed on Friday at US74.52c.

There was talk today that investors were cautious because it was the 22nd anniversary of the 1987 "Black Monday" stock market crash.

News on Friday of a large quarterly loss at Bank of America and flagging consumer confidence in the United States dulled investor demand for higher-yielding, higher-risk currencies.

Evidence that US consumers and some top US banks are still struggling under a mountain of debt afforded investors a chance to book profits on the US dollar's slide.

Still, a Reserve Bank of Australia assistant governor reiterated today that it was appropriate to go back to more normal monetary settings in Australia.

This was a reminder that interest rates will rise, making currencies in this part of the world more attractive.

A light domestic data calendar this week meant the NZ dollar was expected to largely track moves in the Australian dollar.

The NZ dollar was at A80.96c at 5pm from A80.77c on Friday.

It was at 0.4997 euro by 5pm from 0.4996 on Friday, and 67.54 yen from 67.69. The trade weighted index was 66.74 from 66.78 at 5pm on Friday.

- NZPA