New Zealand Dollar edges lower below 0.6000 after weaker Retail Sales data

The NZD/USD pair declines to around 0.5970 during the early Asian session on Monday. The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) weakens against the US Dollar (USD) following New Zealand's downbeat economic data. Traders will keep an eye on the US July Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index report later on Wednesday.

Data released by the Statistics New Zealand on Monday showed that the country’s Retail Sales fell 0.5% QoQ in the second quarter (Q2) of 2026, versus 1.0% prior (revised from 0.9%). This figure came in worse than the market expectations of a 0.1% decline.

Meanwhile, Retail Sales ex Autos increase 0.7% QoQ in Q2, compared to a rise of 1.1% in Q1 (revised from 1.0%). The Kiwi edges slightly lower in an immediate reaction to the weaker New Zealand’s Retail Sales report.

Furthermore, ongoing tensions between the US and Iran provide some support to a safe-haven currency such as the Greenback and create a headwind for the pair. Reuters reported on Sunday that Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi dismissed the threat of a fresh round of US economic sanctions as a “desperate” ploy and said the expected new measures would fail to defeat Tehran. 

Last week, US President Donald Trump announced a new campaign to increase the pressure on the Iranian economy, calling it “the most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country."