KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand dollar eased slightly today after a fall in the Australian dollar, in a reasonably quiet session ahead of the Reserve Bank's rate decision on Thursday.
By 5pm, the kiwi was up slightly at US76.38c from US76.23c late on Monday, although it fell from US76.50c earlier this morning.
Australia's October retail sales rose 0.2 per cent, against forecasts of a 0.6 per cent increase, and building approvals fell 2.8 per cent, beating expectations of a 2 per cent decline.
"The Aussie dollar took quite a hit out of that - the NZD came down in tandem but not as much, pushing the cross rate above A87c," said Westpac market strategist, Michael Gordon.
The kiwi rose to A87.28c from A86.23c late on Monday.
Looking ahead, the Reserve Bank of NZ releases its interest rate decision on Thursday, and US employment data on Friday is seen as a crucial indicator for what the US Federal Reserve will do next to interest rates.
Overnight moves have been dictated in recent times by news and rumours about fallout from the credit crunch.
"The NZ dollar has been holding up pretty well over the last couple of months through a pretty tumultuous period. It suggests to me that traders are really just on the sidelines in terms of the New Zealand dollar," Mr Gordon said.
The yen held gains against the US dollar and strengthened further against higher-yielding currencies, as lingering concerns about turmoil in credit markets prompted investors to shed risky positions.
Uncertainty over the fallout from global credit woes and a fall in US stocks has encouraged investors to unwind carry trades, boosting the yen in recent days. The New Zealand dollar is a beneficiary of carry trades due to its high yield.
5pm today 5pm Monday
NZ dlr/US dlr US76.38c US76.23c
NZ dlr/Aust dlr A87.28c A86.64c
NZ dlr/euro 0.5212 0.5197
NZ dlr/yen 84.36 84.22
NZ dlr/stg 37.02p 37.06p
NZ TWI 70.69 70.52
Australian dollar US87.53c US87.95c
Euro/US dollar 1.4659 1.4663
US dollar/yen 110.43 110.57
- NZPA