KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand dollar firmed against a weakening US dollar this morning, but eased against other major currencies.
The kiwi spiked to a week-high against the US dollar near US55.90c before easing to US54.54c by 8am, from US54.13c at 5pm yesterday.
The US dollar fell against the euro and yen as new US measures to boost consumer lending helped ease concerns about the financial crisis, diminishing demand for the greenback as a haven.
Some investors also sold US dollars after a report showed the US economy shrank in line with expectations. A steeper drop in the GDP figures would have sparked risk aversion, which in turn would support the US currency, analysts said.
US dollar gains recently have been linked to repatriation flows and risk aversion and not to economic fundamentals, they added.
The ANZ bank said the US dollar weakness had provided enough stimulus to ensure the Australasian currencies lifted alongside the euro and sterling.
Against the euro, the NZ dollar eased to 0.4193 at today's local open from 0.4216 at 5pm, while against the yen the kiwi slipped to 52.01 from 52.17.
The NZ dollar was also at A84.30c against the Australian dollar at 8am from A84.55c at yesterday's local close. The trade weighted index eased to 55.05 from 55.15.
- NZPA
