NZD/USD jumps to near 0.5970 as US Dollar slumps at the start of Fed policy week
- NZD/USD climbs to near 0.5970 as the US Dollar underperforms ahead of the Fed’s policy.
- The Fed is expected to hold interest rates steady on Wednesday.
- Higher NZ Q4 CPI has opened the door for an interest rate hike in the near term.
The NZD/USD pair trades 0.3% higher to near 0.5975 during the Asian trading session on Monday. The Kiwi pair strengthens as the US Dollar (USD) underperforms across the board at the start of the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) monetary policy week.
At the time of writing, the US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback’s value against six major currencies, is down 0.4% to near 97.00, the lowest level seen in over four months.
US Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies today. US Dollar was the weakest against the Japanese Yen.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | -0.35% | -0.19% | -1.03% | -0.08% | -0.36% | -0.27% | -0.59% | |
| EUR | 0.35% | 0.15% | -0.64% | 0.27% | -0.02% | 0.07% | -0.24% | |
| GBP | 0.19% | -0.15% | -0.80% | 0.11% | -0.17% | -0.08% | -0.40% | |
| JPY | 1.03% | 0.64% | 0.80% | 0.95% | 0.65% | 0.75% | 0.43% | |
| CAD | 0.08% | -0.27% | -0.11% | -0.95% | -0.28% | -0.19% | -0.51% | |
| AUD | 0.36% | 0.02% | 0.17% | -0.65% | 0.28% | 0.09% | -0.22% | |
| NZD | 0.27% | -0.07% | 0.08% | -0.75% | 0.19% | -0.09% | -0.32% | |
| CHF | 0.59% | 0.24% | 0.40% | -0.43% | 0.51% | 0.22% | 0.32% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the US Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent USD (base)/JPY (quote).
The US Dollar also declined sharply last week after Washington imposed 10% tariffs on several European Union (EU) members and the United Kingdom (UK), in retaliation to their oppose towards US control of Greenland.
However, United States (US) President Donald Trump rolled back additional tariffs and downplayed fears of forceful action in his speech at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, and meeting with NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, but the US Dollar failed to make a long-lived recovery on the same.
On Wednesday, the Fed will leave interest rates unchanged in the range of 3.50%-3.75%, according to the CME FedWatch tool. The Fed reduced borrowing rates by 75 basis points (bps) in the last three policy meetings.
Meanwhile, the broader appeal of the New Zealand Dollar (NZD) has also improved as investors expect the next move by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) would be an “interest rate hike” as price pressures have accelerated in the last quarter of 2025. The data showed on Friday that the NZ Q4 Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose at a faster pace of 3.1%, while it was expected to remain steady at 3%.
Fed FAQs
Monetary policy in the US is shaped by the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Fed has two mandates: to achieve price stability and foster full employment. Its primary tool to achieve these goals is by adjusting interest rates. When prices are rising too quickly and inflation is above the Fed’s 2% target, it raises interest rates, increasing borrowing costs throughout the economy. This results in a stronger US Dollar (USD) as it makes the US a more attractive place for international investors to park their money. When inflation falls below 2% or the Unemployment Rate is too high, the Fed may lower interest rates to encourage borrowing, which weighs on the Greenback.
The Federal Reserve (Fed) holds eight policy meetings a year, where the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) assesses economic conditions and makes monetary policy decisions. The FOMC is attended by twelve Fed officials – the seven members of the Board of Governors, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and four of the remaining eleven regional Reserve Bank presidents, who serve one-year terms on a rotating basis.
In extreme situations, the Federal Reserve may resort to a policy named Quantitative Easing (QE). QE is the process by which the Fed substantially increases the flow of credit in a stuck financial system. It is a non-standard policy measure used during crises or when inflation is extremely low. It was the Fed’s weapon of choice during the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. It involves the Fed printing more Dollars and using them to buy high grade bonds from financial institutions. QE usually weakens the US Dollar.
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse process of QE, whereby the Federal Reserve stops buying bonds from financial institutions and does not reinvest the principal from the bonds it holds maturing, to purchase new bonds. It is usually positive for the value of the US Dollar.
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