Dollar Up From Earlier Lows, NZD Marginally Outperforms On Hawkish RBNZ Comments

The BBDXY sits up from earlier lows, last close to 1235.8, down only slightly for the session. We have seen generally tight ranges for most pairs in the G10 space, albeit with modest NZD outperformance.

• In early trade, NZD spiked on hawkish comments from RBNZ Chief Economist Conway. Notably he noted Q4 non-tradables was stronger than they expected and that there is still some way to go to achieve the inflation target.
• NZD/USD got to 0.6144 on the initial move higher, before pulling back to 0.6125/30. This afternoon we have pushed higher though, back to 0.6140/45. The 20 and 50-day EMAs sit slightly higher, rough 0.6150/60, which may be in focus on further upside in the pair.
• USD/JPY dipped to 147.20, sub Monday lows, before support emerged. The pair was last near 147.35, slightly firmer in yen terms for the session. Dec jobless data was mixed, with the unemployment rate ticking down, but the job to applicant ratio also fell.
• US yields are mostly lower, more so at the back end of the curve. Yen hasn't reacted much to these moves though.US equity futures are steady.
• AUD/USD sits unchanged, last near 0.6610. The Dec retail sales was weaker than expected , but the initial market reaction was muted. Earlier highs were at 0.6625. Weaker China/HK equity sentiment is likely weighing at the margin.
• Looking ahead, EU GDP prints later, while in the US house prices and consumer confidence is on tap.