KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand dollar took a peek at US82c and then eased back as traders took profits.
It hit a new 23-year post-float high against the greenback of US81.83c but closed on US81.46c against US81.15c yesterday.
Against other currencies the kiwi mostly eased back, closing at A87.18c from A87.86 at the opening.
The trade-weighted index closed on 73.85 from 73.98 at 5pm yesterday.
The kiwi's record high coincided with the euro hitting a record US$1.50 after surprisingly weak US data and comments by the Federal Reserve's No 2 official reinforced views the central bank will keep cutting interest rates.
The dollar also hit all-time low against a basket of currencies after reports showing US consumer sentiment hit a five-year low and consumer expectations slumped to the worst in 17 years, offering more proof the economy may be in a recession.
Federal Reserve vice chairman Donald Kohn said a weak economy was a bigger worry than inflation risks, suggesting a willingness to keep cutting rates from 3 per cent as the central bank tackles "difficult times".
Traders said that expectations of more Fed rate cuts were bound to further injure the US currency, and the only question was how many more Fed rate cuts are in store. The Fed is expected to slash rates by a half-point in March to 2.5 per cent.
"We've just gone through a major psychological level, so the market is considering where the euro's next ceiling will be," said Hideaki Inoue, a forex manager at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking.
Local data showed the domestic economy was none too strong. The number of building consents authorised in January was down 7.3 per cent on a year earlier, continuing a downward trend in the figures.
However, despite the year-on-year fall, the seasonally adjusted number of dwelling unit consents was up 3.3 per cent last month, following a 3.9 per cent decrease in December.
Currency rates:
NZ dlr/US dlr US81.46c US81.15c
NZ dlr/Aust dlr A87.18c A87.31c
NZ dlr/euro 0.5430 0.5470
NZ dlr/yen 87.18 87.50
NZ dlr/stg 41.00 41.23p
NZ TWI 73.85 73.98
Australian dollar US93.43c US92.88c
Euro/US dollar 1.5001 1.4828
US dollar/yen 107.05 107.91
- NZPA
