AUD/NZD keeps RBA-led gains on mixed NZ employment data, Aussie Retail Sales eyed

• AUD/NZD stays firmer after NZ Q1 2022 jobs data fails to impress sellers.
• New Zealand Employment Change, Unemployment Rate match market forecasts.
• RBA’s more-than-expected rate hike, pre-Fed consolidation previously favored bulls before NZ GDT Price Index.
• Australia Retail Sales for March will offer immediate direction but FOMC will have a higher say.

AUD/NZD remains mostly sidelined around 1.1035, mildly up of late, following the release of the New Zealand jobs report on early Wednesday in Asia.

As per the latest New Zealand (NZ) employment report from the Statistics New Zealand, the first quarter (Q1) 2022 Employment Change and Unemployment Rate figures match 0.1% and 3.2% respective market forecasts. Details suggest that the Participation Rate eased to 70.9% versus 71.1% expected and prior whereas Labour Cost Index met the 3.1% YoY expectations compared to 2.8% prior readouts.

Read: New Zealand Employment Report leaves NZD sidelined ahead of Fed

Earlier in the day, NZ GDT Price Index registered fourth consecutive slump with -8.5% figure, the most since 2015, versus -0.3% expected and -3.6% previous readings. Following that, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) Financial Stability Report (FSR) praised the economic transition.

Read: RBNZ: The New Zealand financial system remains well placed to support the economy.

It’s worth noting that the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) higher-than-expected rate lift, as well as robust inflation and hopes of tighter monetary policy from other major central banks added strength to the AUD/NZD prices the previous day. However, pre-Fed caution seems to have tested the bulls afterwards.

Moving on, Australia’s Retail Sales for March, expected 0.6% versus 1.8% prior, will offer immediate direction to the pair but major attention will be given to the market’s mood ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC).

Technical analysis

A daily closing beyond the August 2020 top surrounding 1.1045 becomes necessary for the AUD/NZD bulls to rule out a pullback towards a seven-week-old support line near 1.0850.