$NZ closes over 54c

Press, 19 February 1986, Page 35

$NZ closes over 54c

PA Wellington The New Zealand dollar closed stronger in steady trading at $U50.5400.15 on the Wellington foreign-ex-change market yesterday compared with a morning opening at $U50.5360/75. Morning trading was quieter, many waiting for the Minister of Finance, Mr Douglas, to update the depth of the Budget deficit. Mr Douglas’s disclosure that the deficit was about SIOOM above the $1.68 he predicted in November had little effect on late afternoon trading, dealers said. “Some may be sitting back trying to digest the importance of this and what, if any, effect there will be on internal interest rates, but I don’t think it’s going to have any effect at all,” one senior dealer said. “Of course it may be interpreted differently offshore, but I would doubt that, too,” he added. MIM issue A Queensland miner, MIM Holdings, Ltd, is to make a renounceable one-for-five rights issue at sAust2.oo a share to raise ' about sAust2ooM. Asarco Inc is to take up 6.3 M MIM shares, but its remaining entitlement of 37.9 M shares would be placed with a number of institutions. This would mean Asarco’s holding in MIM falling to 37.7 per cent from 44 per cent. Bougainville Bougainville Copper, Ltd, has boosted earnings by 16.5 M kina (SNZ3I.7M), more than doubling its net profit in the year to December 31. The 52.6 per cent CRAowned company posted a net profit of K28.1l million (SNZS4.IM) compared with its 1984 net performance of K11.60M (5NZ22.3M).

Dealers said there was now little to hamper the support the dollar has been enjoying on the market. Many thought it would continue to strengthen. The kiwi traded yesterday in a tight range between $U50.5360 and $U50.5410, and during the day improved against all major currencies.

The Rural Bank’s tradeweighted exchange rate index at 3 p.m. put the kiwi at 66.6 — up 0.4 from its opening and 0.6 from the afternoon level on Monday. On cross-rate values the New Zealand dollar was worth (with the morning’s values in brackets): sAust77.7c (sAust77.2), 1.27 marks (1.26), 38.4 p (37.9), and 98.35 yen (96.96). The United States dollar firmed against the mark — rising to 2.3510 marks from an opening at 2.3400 — and arrested a slide against the yen to finish at 181.75, after opening at 180.00/15. Some dealers are expecting the United States unit to consolidate for a short time. The Australian dollar closed around 5U50.6960/ 67 — easing again slightly on the morning opening at $U50.6974/81. There was no trading in the United States overnight because of the George Washington’s Birthday holiday.

Foreign exchange markets stopped their United States dollar selling spree in Tokyo yesterday as Japanese authorities showed signs of concrete action to stop the rapid rise of the yen against the once-mighty greenback.

The US dollar stood at 181.80 yen at midday, below an opening at 182.40 but well above the low of 179.70 touched briefly on Monday.