Kiwi On Defensive Ahead Of RBNZ MPS

NZD/USD fell for the second consecutive day on Tuesday as the Antipodeans underperformed all their G10 peers save for safe havens JPY & CHF.

• The commodity complex provided little in the way of unidirectional impetus, as the aggregate BBG Commodity Index erased its initial uptick.
• The GDT Price Index fell 2.9% at the latest auction amid a 3.5% decline in whole milk powder.
• Equity sentiment stayed buoyant in Europe, while the S&P 500 rose and the NASDAQ fell 0.2% apiece. The VIX index edged lower.
• The RBNZ is widely expected to raise the OCR by another 50bp today. The focus will be on any hints re: the future pace of the Bank's tightening campaign. Our comprehensive preview of the decision is available here.
• Worth noting that this is an MPS meeting, which means we will get the updated economic forecasts, while Governor Orr will hold a press conference.
• NZD/USD last trades at $0.6344, little changed on the day. Bears look for losses towards Jul 21 low of $0.6185. Conversely, bulls need a clearance of Aug 12 high of $0.6468 before targeting Jun 3 high of $0.6576.