Stalled jobs growth surprises investors, adds to RBNZ case for keeping rates low

Wed, 02 Aug 2017

By Paul McBeth Aug. 2 (BusinessDesk) - An unexpected dip in employment in the June quarter surprised market analysts who were picking growth to remain robust, prompting a sell-off in the kiwi dollar and firming up expectations for the Reserve Bank to keep interest rates on hold for longer. New Zealand's two-year swap rate dropped 5 basis points to 2.17 percent and the local currency fell to 74.27 US cents as at 11.50am from 74.67 cents immediately before Statistics New Zealand released figures showing employment shrank 0.2 percent in the...

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