NZ dollar falls as US non-manufacturing index jumps, ADP jobs drop as expected

The kiwi declined to 71.64 US cents as at 8am in Wellington. Photo / 123RF

The New Zealand dollar fell as an index of the US non-manufacturing sector jumped, underpinning confidence in the economy, while a measure of private payrolls fell as expected in the wake of hurricane disruptions.

The kiwi declined to 71.64 US cents as at 8am in Wellington from 71.80 cents late yesterday. The trade-weighted index fell to 75.59 from 75.74.

The US Institute for Supply Management's non-manufacturing index climbed to 59.8 in September, the highest in 12 years and exceeding economists' expectations, up from 55.3 in August. Separately, the ADP employment report showed that US private payrolls increased by 135,000 in September, the lowest gain in 11 months and in line with economists' expectations.

The official payrolls figures due on Friday are expected to show similar weakness after Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, with a forecast of just 90,000 jobs added by US employers last month.

"US data releases continued to point to robust momentum in the economy as the Q3 data trail draws to a close," Sharon Zollner, senior economist at ANZ Bank New Zealand, said in a note.

"The NZ economy has lost some of its lustre, at a time when the tone of US data is looking solid."

The Treasury is to release the Crown accounts for the 12 months ended June 30 today, the only event on the local economic calendar. Traders will likely watch for releases across the Tasman, where Australian trade and retail sales data for August are due for release. Tonight the US releases trade figures for August.

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The kiwi fell to 91.16 Australian cents from 91.34 cents yesterday. The local currency traded at 54.07 British pence from 54.13 pence yesterday and fell to 60.91 euro cents from 61.03 cents. It decreased to 80.77 yen from 80.90 yen and dropped to 4.7658 yuan from 4.7791 yuan.