Kiwi May Defy Hedge-Fund Bears on Hawkish RBNZ, Analysts Say

New Zealand’s dollar may defy bearish hedge-fund positioning and rally in the near-term on a hawkish tilt from the central bank and any de-escalation in the Middle East, analysts say.

Short positions in the kiwi held by leveraged funds climbed to their highest since December 2019 in the week to May 5, according to Commodity Futures Trading Commission data. Yet the currency has not tracked those bets and may rise almost 2% from current levels if technical support holds, Westpac Banking Corp. said.