Last night, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand raised the overnight interest rates as expected from 3.00 percent from 2.75 percent. This was no surprise as the market widely had anticipated it. The move by the Central Banks of India and Israel was also expected, although the probabilities of the Israeli move were less than the others. So New Zealand raised rates and the currency was sold off, which has significantly weakened on the crosses. The market had a very negative reaction to RBNZ Chief Alan Bollard’s very cautious comments about rates going forward. With KIWI inflation running at an annualized rate of 2 percent, the RBNZ feels it is now ahead of inflation and will watch global growth and see how it effects New Zealand. Bollard expressed concern about the recent strength of the Kiwi and in his statement said:
“The New Zealand dollar has appreciated in recent weeks.This appreciation is inconsistent with the softeningin the New Zealand’s economic outlook …”