NZD / USD clings to 0.6800 despite losing as last trading week of the year begins

• The NZD / USD is down 0.04% during the day.
• The NZD is lower on the general strength of the US dollar.
• Market sentiment is optimistic, despite the first Covid-19 Omicron related death reported worldwide.
• NZD / USD Price Forecast: Has a downside bias, but a break below 0.6800 is needed to calm the NZD bears.

The New Zealand dollar it falls as Wall Street closes near, trading at 0.6816 at the time of writing. US stock indices reflect the optimistic mood of the market, despite the spread of the recently discovered strain called Ómicron around the world. Meanwhile, New Zealand’s neighbor Australia reported the first Covid-19 Omicron-related death, despite Australia sticking to its reopening plan.

The decline in the New Zealand dollar is related to the general strength of the US dollar. The US dollar index, which measures the value of the dollar against a basket of its rivals, is up 0.07% to 96.09, a headwind for the NZD / USD pair, which shows some of the gains from last week.
Meanwhile, the 10-year US Treasury yield fell 1bp to 1,481%.

NZD / USD Price Forecast: Technical Outlook

The daily NZD / USD chart shows that the pair has a bearish bias. The downward sloping daily moving averages (DMAs) are above the spot price and it would be challenging to overcome dynamic resistance levels.

With that said, Monday’s price action is forming a hanging candle that has bearish implications. However, the lower wick is longer, so NZD bears should be cautious in their attempt to sell the NZD / USD pair because the 0.6800 barrier has been unsuccessfully broken to the downside two days earlier.

However, the first support on the way south would be the 0.6800 figure. A break below the latter would expose the December 23 daily low at 0.6795, followed by the December 22 low at 0.6739 and then the December 20 low at 0.6702.