Investing.com - The New Zealand rose against its U.S. counterpart on Wednesday, after data showed that business confidence in New Zealand improved this month, although investors remained cautious ahead of fresh comments by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen later in the day.
NZD/USD hit 0.6380 during late Asian trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.6370, gaining 0.36%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.6287, Tuesday's low and resistance at 0.6459, the high of September 18.
Data earlier showed that the ANZ business confidence index for New Zealand improved to minus 18.9 in September from a reading of minus 29.1 the previous month.
Meanwhile, investors awaited comments by Fed Chair Janet Yellen due later in the day after mixed messages from several U.S. central bank policymakers last week led to uncertainty over whether the Fed will raise short term interest rates this year.
New York Fed President William Dudley and San Francisco Fed head John Williams indicated support for a rate hike in 2015 in separate speeches on Monday, but Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said rates should remain on hold until mid-2016.
Last week, Ms. Yellen said that the bank was still on track for a rate hike before the years end.
The U.S. dollar still remained supported however after the Conference Board reported on Tuesday that its index of consumer confidence rose to an eight-year high of 103.0 this month from a reading of 101.3 in August.
The kiwi was higher against the Australian dollar, with AUD/NZD slipping 0.10% to 1.0994.
Also Wednesday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that building approvals declined by 6.9% last month, compared to expectations for a 2.0% drop. Housing approvals increased by 7.9% in July, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 4.2% gain.