NZD/USD loses ground following Chinese and American economic activity data

• NZD/USD trades with losses below 0.6000, its lowest in nine months.
• China reported weak Retail Sales and  Industrial Production data from July.
• American Retail Sales from the US were higher than expected.

In Tuesday’s session, the NZD/USD traded lower, mainly driven by China’s fragile economic situation. On the other hand, the USD, despite solid Retail Sales data, the USD trades weakly and consolidates the previous session's gains. Eyes on the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s (RBNZ) decision, expected to hold rates at 5.5%.

Investors digest Retail Sales figures from the US and China

US Retail Sales came in higher than expected. The headline rose by 0.7% MoM, higher than the 0.4% expected. Sales Excluding the Automobile sector also met expectations and came in at 1% vs the 0.4% expected. The USD gained some traction as a reaction, but the DXY remains in negative territory and is consolidating, as well as the US Treasury yields.

On the other hand, the Kiwi is losing traction amid the worrying economic situation. On Monday, real-state downturn figures applied selling pressure and was exacerbated on Tuesday following weak Retail Sales and Industrial Production from July. Focus now shift to the RBNZ decision on Wednesday, where markets expect the bank to hold rates steady at 5.5%.

NZD/USD Levels to watch

Observing the daily chart, NZD/USD suggests a bearish sentiment for the near term. The relative Strength Index (RSI) remains in the negative zone below its midline, near oversold conditions. Concurrently, Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) reflects rising red bars, reinforcing the bearish momentum. Furthermore, the pair is below the 20,100 and 200-day Simple Moving Averages (SMAs), indicating a challenging position for the buyers in the bigger picture as the bears remain in command.

Support levels: 0.5950, 0.5930, 0.5920.

Resistance levels: 0.6000, 0.6020, 0.6050.

NZD/USD Daily chart