5 Feb 2010

Dollar falls to five-month low

10:44 pm on 5 February 2010

The New Zealand dollar hit a five-month low against the US dollar overnight but regained some ground during Friday's trading.

The dollar has lost 6 cents since the middle of January and at 10pm on Friday it was buying US68.7c.

The Kiwi hit a high of US74c in mid-January before concerns surrounding several European economies and China took hold.

These pushed the local currency to a low of US69.7c before the release of weak unemployment statistics on Thursday.

The higher-than-expected unemployment rate led to speculation that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand may hold off raising the Official Cash Rate past June.

Investors dumped the New Zealand dollar as a result and it fell a further 1c overnight on Thursday against the Greenback to a five-month low.

The Kiwi regained some ground during the day as exporters took advantage of the dip to convert foreign earnings into New Zealand dollars.