A calm day on the currency market saw the New Zealand dollar cling onto its gains, settling above the US44c mark again this evening.
"It's been a quiet little day, and we're just waiting for the next piece of data," one dealer said.
The kiwi ranged from US43.88 to US44.08. At 5pm it was trading at US44.05c, compared with US44.14c at yesterday's close.
Earlier today dealers said there had been good demand for the kiwi, especially against the aussie. The buying may have been related to Allied's purchase of wine maker Montana.
The kiwi held onto the ground it covered on the aussie-kiwi cross yesterday, closing on A83.04c.
Many currencies were in "data watching mode" which kept them locked in a narrow band today.
Positive data from Australia included a rise in the monthly building approvals and a growing trade surplus on the back of its record low current account deficit.
In Europe, the European Central Bank (ECB) was tipped to make a 25 basis point interest rate cut to 4.25 percent.
If that happened, the euro could rise and the aussie and kiwi would probably improve on its back, Sean Brown of Deutsche Bank said.
In the US, gross domestic product (GDP) figures last night were slightly better than expected, but the greenback failed to garner much strength. Unemployment data was expected out on Friday.
"The markets are very focused on anything that comes out," Mr Brown said. "(In the US) we've seen weak equity markets, bonds rallying and the weak US dollar so all the currencies including the NZ dollar are pretty focused on that at the moment."
On the crosses, the kiwi was buying 0.4849 euros (0.4835 at yesterday's close), 52.80 yen (52.59), 30.39 pence (30.40), 0.9480 marks (0.9460), 0.7359 Swiss francs (0.7344).
The aussie was buying $NZ1.2044 from $NZ1.2031 yesterday.
The trade-weighted index was at 51.77 (51.78), 90-day bills were steady at 5.84 percent and the monetary conditions index eased to minus 605 (minus 602).
Bond yields mostly fell with the March 2002s at 5.68 percent (5.68 percent), the April 2004s at 6.09 percent (6.10), the November 2006s at 6.30 percent (6.30), and the November 2011s at 6.46 percent (6.46).
On Wall Street stocks fell sharply for the second straight day on Wednesday, the market stumbling to lows unseen since April, as investors dwelled on America's declining economic growth rate.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 131.13 points, or 1.28 percent, to 10,090.90, according to the latest data, a finish unseen since April 11. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 12.95 points, or 1.11 percent, to 1,148.56, a close unseen since April 9.
The technology-loaded Nasdaq composite index slipped 21.81 points, or 1.17 percent, to 1,843.17. The Nasdaq's recent closing low remains last Tuesday's 1,831.30.
- NZPA
<i>Currency:</i> Currencies watch closely for fresh data
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