NZD/USD: Upside stalls again near 0.7525 on dismal China PMI

The renewed strength seen in NZD/USD during early Asia lost legs following the release of below estimates Chinese and NZ macro updates.

NZD/USD faces double whammy

The NZD/USD pair erased most gains and trades modestly flat, as the sentiment around the NZD was dented by persisting risk-off markets profile on the one hand, sparked by Friday’s North Korean missile test. Meanwhile, downbeat Chinese manufacturing PMI report combined with poor NZ business confidence data also weighed down on the prices.

China July official manufacturing PMI prints lower than estimate

New Zealand ANZ Business Confidence down to 19.4 in July from previous 24.8

More so, resurgent broad based USD demand seen in Asia also kept a lid on the upside. The USD index edges +0.08% higher at 93.27, attempting a minor-recovery from just ahead of 93 handle.

Looking ahead, we have a big week ahead for the Kiwi, with the employment data from both economies to have a significant impact in the coming days.

NZD/USD Levels to consider                                                                              

NZD/USD regained 5-DMA at 0.7512, with a test of 0.7526/34 (Jul 28 & May 2015 high) due on the cards, which could open doors towards 0.7650 (key resistance). To the downside lies 0.7501/00 (daily low/ psychological levels) still guarding 0.7472 (10-DMA) and a break back below 0.7391 (20-DMA) are key near-term downside areas.