NZD/USD pares early losses to turn flat at 0.7280

Having posted a session low at 0.7241, the NZD/USD pair has managed to recover majority of its lost ground during early Asian session on Friday and is currently trading with only marginal losses at 0.7275-80 region.

The pair seems to benefit from strong tourism and credit card spending data from New-Zealand. Moreover, lack of clarity over the Fed's next rate-hike decision remains a key overhang on the greenback has been a key factor extending support and restricting any sharp slide for the pair. 

However, the pair's repeated failures to sustain its strength above 0.7300 handle raises skepticism over possibilities of further up-move. Nevertheless, the pair is still headed to post a second consecutive week of advances.

With an empty economic calendar on Friday, the pair would continue to be driven by a broader sentiment surrounding the US Dollar.

Technical levels to watch

Sustained bullish move above 0.7275-80 zone, and a subsequent buying interest beyond 0.7300 handle, should now assist the pair towards retesting RBNZ-led swing high resistance near 0.7340 area, which if cleared should pave way for continuation of the pair's near-term upward trajectory.

Meanwhile on the downside, 0.7250-40 remains immediate support to defend, which if broken is likely to drag it back towards 0.7210-0.7200 strong support area. A decisive break below 0.7200 handle would negate possibilities of any further up-move and the pair might continue drifting lower initially towards 0.7165-60 support and eventually towards 0.7125-20 strong support.