Kiwi hit by new virus case; souring risk sentiment supports yen, Swiss franc
The New Zealand dollar tumbled on Tuesday after the country discovered its first community case of COVID-19 in six months while the Australian dollar slipped to a one-month low as minutes from the central bank meeting were perceived as dovish.
Safe-haven currencies such as the yen held firm against riskier currencies also on growing anxiety the spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus could disrupt, if not derail, the global economic recovery from the pandemic.
The New Zealand dollar fell 0.7% to $0.6972 after the virus-free country found a community outbreak of COVID-19 for the first time since February.
The news came just a day before the country’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ), is widely expected to become the first among developed countries to raise interest rates since the pandemic as its economy booms.
Safe-haven currencies such as the yen held firm against riskier currencies on Tuesday as disappointing economic data from China, the spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus and political tension in Afghanistan weighed on risk appetite.
The dollar eased to 109.24 yen , having lost about 1% over the past two sessions while the euro slipped to as low as 128.50 yen , touching its lowest level since late March.
The U.S. dollar, which is also often seen as the ultimate safe-haven currency, held firm against many other rivals, including the euro and commodity-linked currencies.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 92.761 — still struggling to recover from a recent drop from above 92.8.
The euro changed hands at $1.1785 .
Data on U.S. retail sales and industrial output due later on Tuesday is the next biggest focus for the market.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will be speaking on Tuesday to educators, though, given the audience, many analysts expect him to stay away from monetary policy, opting to speak on the issue next week at a central bank symposium in Jackson Hole.
In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin trading at $46,133 , not far from Saturday's three-month high of $48,190. Ether stood at $3,190 .
Reference: Reuters
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