Ella 
In Asia on Thursday, NZD/USD strengthened to around 0.6108. The New Zealand dollar rose after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced it was keeping interest rates steady and said a rate cut may be delayed due to persistently high inflation.
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand decided to maintain the policy rate at a stable level of 5.50% for the seventh consecutive time at its May meeting on Wednesday. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand pointed out in a statement: “The decline in inflation reflects to a certain extent the decline in the inflation rate of New Zealand’s imported goods and services.” The Reserve Bank of New Zealand also said it expected inflation to fall back within the target range by the end of 2024. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand maintained a hawkish stance, providing some support and boosting the NZD/USD pair.
In terms of the U.S. dollar, the Federal Reserve (Fed) released the minutes of its policy meeting from April 30 to May 1 on Wednesday, showing that inflation in recent months has not shown improvement in approaching the Fed’s 2% target. “The CME Fed Watch Tool shows that investors continue to adjust their expectations for interest rate cuts this year, and the probability of a rate cut starting in September is close to 60%. The focus will shift to the preliminary value of the U.S. Purchasing Managers Index in May. If the index strengthens, it may This will boost the US dollar and limit the near-term upside of NZD/USD.
