Business confidence and building consents pin back the Kiwi Dollar, with focus now shifting to the U.S and Canada, the markets in search of a conclusion.

Building consents slumped by 10.3% in July, following on from June’s downwardly revised 8.2% slide, adding to concerns over the construction sector.

The Kiwi Dollar moved from $0.67124 to $0.6710 upon release of the figures that came ahead of the business confidence numbers.

The August ANZ Business Confidence survey saw a net 50.3% of respondents expecting economic conditions to deteriorate over the next 12-months, deteriorating from a net -44.9% in July.

• A net 4% of those surveyed had a positive outlook on their own prospects, though this sits well below the long-term average of +27%.
• The manufacturing sector had the least positive sentiment towards their own activity, down 11 points to -4%, while retail and services saw some improvement.
• For the manufacturing sector, the negative elements stem from businesses exposed to domestic construction, with export related businesses seeing expectations hold steady.
• A net 5% of firms are expecting to reduce investment, with employment intentions falling by 8 points to -6%.
• Profit expectations remained unchanged at -17%, with retail and manufacturing sectors the weakest at -17% and -28% respectively.
• A net 36% of businesses expect it to be tougher to get credit, with firms’ pricing intentions falling by 2 points to +27%. Inflation expectations were flat at 2.2%.

The Kiwi Dollar slid from $0.67079 to $0.66768 upon release of the figures, before easing to $0.6655, down 0.91% for the session.