Australian, N.Z. Dollars Fall as Japan Machinery Orders Shrink
By Garfield Reynolds
Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) — The Australian and New Zealand dollars fell as Japanese orders for machinery posted a record quarterly decline, heightening the risk of a prolonged recession in one of Australia’s biggest trading partners.
The Australian currency dropped 1.3 percent to 66.64 U.S. cents from 67.49 cents late on Feb. 6 in New York. It fell 1.6 percent to 61.05 yen. New Zealand’s dollar slid 1.2 percent to 52.53 U.S. cents and weakened 1.5 percent to 48.11 yen.
To contact the reporter on this story: Garfield Reynolds in Sydney atgreynolds1@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: February 8, 2009 21:52 EST