RBNZ Unveils Details Of Bond Holdings Reduction, NZ Housing Market Continues To Cool

Weakness in equity markets weighed on Antipodean currencies Wednesday, prompting NZD/USD to extend its losing streak. The rate has shed a further 5 pips this morning and last operates at $0.6443.

• From a technical standpoint, the key near-term bearish target has been defined at $0.6423, which limited losses on May 24, May 25 & Jun 7. Should we manage to get below there, focus would turn to May 18 low of $0.6291. Bulls look for recovery towards Jun 3 high of $0.6576.
• The RBNZ unveiled the operational details of planned sales of government bonds acquired under the LSAP programme, which applied pressure to NZGBs this morning. There has been little follow-through in terms of FX price action, even as 10-Year NZGB yield climbed to a multi-year high.
• The latest QV House Price Index showed that "the housing market has fallen back to the same levels seen at the end of November 2021," owing to "rising interest rates and credit constraints." QV General Manager Nagel suggested that "we're unlikely to see any significant value growth until at least 2023."
• The government will remove some controversial responsible lending laws that have been blamed for making lenders ultra-conservative, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Clark confirmed. The changes, drafted after feedback from lenders and consumers, will take effect on July 7.
• Reminder that quarterly m'fing activity & monthly card spending data will hit the wires tomorrow.