Investing.com - The New Zealand dollar rose to near five-week highs against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday, after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand left interest rates unchanged, although the greenback remained supported by recent U.S. housing data.
NZD/USD hit 0.8001 during late Asian trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.7998, advancing 0.71%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.7887, the low of July 19 and resistance at 0.8100, the high of June 17.
At the end of its monthly policy meeting, the RBNZ held its benchmark interest rate at 2.50%, in a widely expected move.
The central bank said the pace of future interest rate increases will depend on the housing market's impact on prices and reiterated it will keep borrowing costs at a record low this year.
The comments added to speculation that the RBNZ will raise interest rates as soon as next January.
Meanwhile, the greenback found support after official data on Wednesday showed that U.S. new home sales jumped to a five-year high in June, boosting expectations that the Federal Reserve will start to scale back its bond buying program later this year.
The Commerce Department said U.S. new home sales jumped 8.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 497,000 units, the highest level since May 2008.
The kiwi was higher against the euro with EUR/NZD shedding 0.57%, to hit 1.6523.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to produce data on initial jobless claims and durable goods orders.
NZD/USD hit 0.8001 during late Asian trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.7998, advancing 0.71%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.7887, the low of July 19 and resistance at 0.8100, the high of June 17.
At the end of its monthly policy meeting, the RBNZ held its benchmark interest rate at 2.50%, in a widely expected move.
The central bank said the pace of future interest rate increases will depend on the housing market's impact on prices and reiterated it will keep borrowing costs at a record low this year.
The comments added to speculation that the RBNZ will raise interest rates as soon as next January.
Meanwhile, the greenback found support after official data on Wednesday showed that U.S. new home sales jumped to a five-year high in June, boosting expectations that the Federal Reserve will start to scale back its bond buying program later this year.
The Commerce Department said U.S. new home sales jumped 8.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 497,000 units, the highest level since May 2008.
The kiwi was higher against the euro with EUR/NZD shedding 0.57%, to hit 1.6523.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to produce data on initial jobless claims and durable goods orders.