HiFX Morning Update

The NZDUSD opens at 0.7165 (mid-rate) this morning.

It was a quiet close to the week for currency markets with investors focusing on the inauguration of Donald Trump and an absence of US economic data releases.

Friday night’s UK retail sales report for the month of December declined 1.9% from November its largest fall since April 2012. Economists had expected the data to show a 0.1% dip.

It looks like we will have a slow start to the week with Wellington enjoying a long weekend and no notable data releases during our trading day.

The key domestic driver for the NZD will be Thursday’s quarterly CPI data release with economists expecting Q4 CPI to come in at 0.3% after the surprise 0.2% increase in the September quarter.

Global equity markets with the FTSE the exception closed out the week slightly higher - Dow +0.48%, S&P 500 +0.33%, FTSE -0.14%, DAX +0.29%, CAC +0.20%, Nikkei +0.34%, Shanghai +0.70%.

Gold prices edged higher on Friday closing out the week up 0.8% at $1,209 an ounce, WTI Crude Oil surged 3.9% on Fridayfor a small weekly gain, closing out the week at $53.22 a barrel.

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