The Pound made gains against the New Zealand Dollar on Friday after a report released early in the morning showed that consumer confidence in the UK is a at a nine-year high.
According to the research group Gfk, its consumer confidence index climbed by three points this month to bring the measurement to zero. Today marks the first time in almost ten years that the index has climbed out of negative territory.
The index measures people’s confidence in their personal financial situation and their attitudes to big purchases. Both advanced over the month as the UK economy continues to perform well.
“A rise of three points in the index in a month is itself a significant change but what matters more, psychologically at least, is that the index has left negative territory for the first time in over nine years. It is not actually positive but this is the first time it has reached zero since April 2005,” said Nick Moon, managing director of social research at Gfk.
The New Zealand Dollar meanwhile is on track to make a weekly fall against a number of peers after yesterday’s news that the Fonterra Cooperative Group cut its forecasts for the coming year weighed on sentiment.
Investors are seemingly losing their enthusiasm for the ‘Kiwi’ as the New Zealand economy appears to be slowing and as Fonterra cut its forecasted payouts to the nation’s farmers.
Investors have also pared back their bets that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand will raise interest rates this year, instead many now believe the rate will remain unchanged for the near future. The RBNZ is due to review the cash rate on June 12th.
“There’s a groundswell of opinion that the Reserve Bank is going to pause, we just need the governor to open his mouth,” said an economist based in Auckland.
The ‘Kiwi’ made gains against the US Dollar after data showed that the USA’s GDP fell unexpectedly in the first quarter of the year.
New Zealand Dollar (NZD) Exchange Rates
[table width=”100%” colwidth=”50|50|50|50|50″ colalign=”left|left|left|left|left”]
Currency, ,Currency,Rate ,
New Zealand Dollar,
,US Dollar,0.8486 ,
New Zealand Dollar,, Pound Sterling,0.5068 ,
New Zealand Dollar,,Euro,0.6233 ,
New Zealand Dollar,,Australian Dollar,0.9121 ,
Euro,, New Zealand Dollar ,1.6049 ,
US Dollar,, New Zealand Dollar ,1.1784 ,
Australian Dollar,, New Zealand Dollar ,1.0963 ,
Pound Sterling,, New Zealand Dollar ,1.9727 ,
[/table]
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