The New Zealand dollar held above US61c today, getting as high as US61.40c for a short while after comments by Finance Minister Michael Cullen.
It eased from that level to be US61.18c around 5pm, little changed from its level early this morning but stronger than the US60.82c 24 hours earlier.
Dr Cullen told Radio New Zealand the currency was now in a comfortable area from the perspective of exporters and the economy as a whole.
"Obviously, the concern now is that it may fall too quickly and push more inflationary pressure on and that'll put off the day when the Reserve Bank can start easing up on interest rates," he said.
The kiwi had tumbled to a 22-month low below US60c on Wednesday.
The TWI was little changed over the day to be 63.13 this evening, but a little stronger than the 62.97 yesterday evening.
It had support today from the latest National Bank Business Outlook which showed New Zealand business confidence had pulled out of the nosedive of late last year.
While 51 per cent of respondents still expected business conditions to deteriorate over the next year, that was an improvement from a net 65 per cent last month.
ASB Bank today said the kiwi appeared to be taking a breather after the sharp falls of the past few weeks, but pressures on the currency would ensure the downward trend remained in place during 2006.
The speed of the fall in recent weeks may suggest continued consolidation in the near term, the bank said.
The following are Reuters currency rates:
5pm today 5pm Thursday
NZ dlr US61.18c US60.82c
NZ dlr/Aust dlr A85.48c A85.62c
NZ dlr/euro 0.5034 0.5037
NZ dlr/yen 71.84 71.70
NZ dlr/stg 35.06p 34.94p
NZ TWI 63.13 62.97
Australian dollar US71.61c US71.02c
Euro/US dollar US1.2155 US1.2072
US dollar/yen 117.42 117.58
- NZPA
<EM>Currency:</EM> Dollar holds above US61C
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