Kiwi dollar up slightly overnight

The New Zealand dollar pushed back above US68c overnight but was unable to hold onto the gains.

By 8am the kiwi was buying US67.69c, still slightly above the US67.50c at 5pm yesterday.

ANZ bank said the NZ dollar's overnight spike higher was driven by North American interests. It was easily thwarted by sellers from Asia.

Attempts to go higher should continue to be thwarted with overall selling interests and positioning ahead of the Reserve Bank's interest rate announcement next Thursday, ANZ said.

The NZ dollar was up to 0.4749 at 8am from 0.4727 at 5pm, and lifted to 62.72 yen from 62.27.

The yen's attraction as a safe haven faded as global stock markets took on an upbeat tone. The Japanese currency fell from a seven-week high against the US dollar and declined versus other major currencies.

The euro erased most gains against the greenback after the European Central Bank offered no signs of an exit from its unconventional measures aimed at stimulating the economy and signaled that interest rates will remain low for some time.

Against the Australian dollar, the kiwi eased to A80.67c at 8am from A80.78c at 5pm, while the trade weighted index lifted to 62.75 from 62.63.

- NZPA