Extends Losses

NZD/USD traded with a bearish bias Monday as the spectre of potential escalation in the Russia-Ukraine standoff continued to linger, even as intensified diplomatic activity continued, while Russia pointed to the need for further talks. Poor PSI reading for the month of January sapped some strength from the kiwi dollar, as did rising daily Covid-19 caseload.

• NZD/USD trades flat at $0.6617 at typing. Bears look for a dip through Feb 4 low of $0.6590, after the rate failed to penetrate that level on Monday, with Jan 28 low of $0.6530 providing the next layer of support. Bulls need a rebound above Feb 10 high of $0.6733 to get some reprieve.
• The latest REINZ report showed that "while January figures usually reflect the holiday slow down, compounding factors are influencing a decrease in sales activity and easing of price growth nationwide." The Institute noted that "Looking forward, we would expect sales volumes to increase as we head into February and March. However, this does depend on reasonable levels of new listings."
• Looking ahead, quarterly PPI figures will be published on Friday.