Aussie Holds Near 13-Year High Against Kiwi Amid Diverging Rate Outlooks

The Australian dollar held steady near its 13-year high against the New Zealand dollar on Thursday due to diverging rate outlooks between the two central banks.

Markets bet that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) will take different approaches to monetary policy, with the RBA likely to keep rates unchanged while the RBNZ may hold off on further hikes.

The Aussie slipped 0.1% to NZ$1.2227 after reaching a 13-year peak of NZ$1.2285 overnight, its biggest daily rise since April 2025.

The kiwi, meanwhile, bounced back 0.2% to $0.5863, having fallen 0.7% the previous day to as low as $0.5802, the weakest since July 30.