The New Zealand dollar fell after terrorist attacks in Brussels prompted investors to seek so-called safe haven assets such as bonds and gold and eschew higher risk bets such as the kiwi.
The local currency dropped to 67.38 US cents at 8am in Wellington, from 67.68 cents at 5pm yesterday. The trade-weighted index slid to 71.56 from 71.85 yesterday.
Terrorist bombings in Brussels, the official seat of the European Parliament and the unofficial capital of the European Union, killed at least 34 people and weighed on investor sentiment for higher risk assets.
The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, or VIX which is known as Wall Street's fear gauge, initially jumped higher then returned to its previous level after US data showed evidence of a tentative stabilisation in manufacturing.
"Markets were focused on the tragic Brussels terrorists attack overnight, which triggered modest safe-haven flows for the first half of the session," ANZ Bank New Zealand agri economist Con Williams and senior foreign exchange strategist Sam Tuck said in a note.
