New Zealand dollar scales six-week high versus greenback

New Zealand dollar rose in Asian trade to December 19 highs against its US counterpart, amid a lack of data from the US today and ahead of New Zealand data. 

As of 02:26 GMT, NZD/USD rose 0.22% to 0.6854, with an intraday low at 0.6824, and a six-week high at 0.6858. 

Now markets await New Zealand data, with the trade balance expected to show a surplus of 225 million New Zealand dollars, compared to a deficit of 861 million in November. 

Investors also await the second round of talks between US and China, the largest trade partner for New Zealand, scheduled for January 30-31. 

US President Donald Trump asked Congress to come up with a new bill to reopen the federal government until mid-February, ending the longest government shutdown in US history.