The Pound Sterling to New Zealand Dollar (GBP/NZD) exchange rate rallied by around 1.32% on Wednesday.
After British economic data produced positive results, the Pound rallied against its major peers. April’s Average Weekly Earnings came in at 2.7% on the year; bettering the median market forecast 2.1% increase. In addition, April’s Average Weekly Earnings ex Bonus also improved by 2.7%; eclipsing the market consensus of a 2.5% wages increase. May’s Claimant Count Rate advanced by 2.3%, bettering estimates, and Unemployment Rate equalled the market prediction of 5.5% in April. April’s Employment Change dropped beyond expectations from 202,000 to 114,000, but May’s Jobless Claims Change improved upon predictions of -6,500. ‘The upward surprise in today’s wage data should go some way to easing concerns that core inflation will continue to fall following yesterday’s softer-than-expected reading,’ said BNP Paribas’ analyst Dominic Bryant.
The Pound also found support after Minutes from the most recent Bank of England (BoE) policy meeting showed policymakers were confident about UK growth. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously in favour of holding the cash rate, but the minutes showed that they expect the headwinds causing low inflation to ease. ‘With more evidence the UK will not experience a prolonged period of very low inflation, the MPC appears to have switched instead to stressing that the path of interest rates will be upward,’ said Niraj Shah, an economist at Bloomberg Intelligence in London. ‘The tone of the minutes was more hawkish than in recent months, suggesting that unity may only last through the summer.’
The Pound Sterling to New Zealand Dollar (GBP/NZD) exchange rate is currently trending in the region of 2.2680.
The New Zealand Dollar has generally been trending in a weak position after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) surprised the market by cutting the cash rate for the first time in over four years. Wednesday has seen the ‘Kiwi’ (NZD) continue to trend lower versus most of its peers despite the fact that the US Dollar is holding a comparatively weak position. The depreciation can be linked to traders awaiting first-quarter Gross Domestic Product results. GDP is expected to come in at 3.1% on the year, a drop from the previous growth of 3.5%. In addition to traders awaiting data, the New Zealand Dollar softened in response to damp market sentiment. With the situation in Greece reaching boiling point, and talks between Athens and Eurozone officials showing little sign of progression, market sentiment and trader risk appetite has cooled significantly.
The Pound Sterling to New Zealand Dollar (GBP/NZD) exchange rate was trending within the range of 2.2380 – 2.2718 on Wednesday.
Advertisement