NZ dollar tumbles, swaps, bond rates rise after Fed signals faster pace of interest rate hikes

NZ dollar tumbles, swaps, bond rates rise after Fed signals faster pace of interest rate hikes
Jonathan Underhill
By Jonathan Underhill Dec. 15 (BusinessDesk) - The New Zealand dollar shed more than 1 US cent while bond and swap rates rose after the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate and signalled a faster pace of hikes in 2017. The kiwi dollar dropped to 71 US cents as at 5pm in Wellington from 72.15 cents late yesterday. The trade-weighted index fell to 78.55 from 79.18. The Fed raised the target federal funds rate by 25 basis points to between 0.50 percent and 0.75 percent, as expected, but also signalled three further increases...