SYDNEY, Sept 19 (Reuters) - The Australian and New Zealand dollars were treading water on Tuesday as traders braced for offshore central bank rate decisions this week, while the minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia failed to shift the domestic monetary policy outlook.
The Aussie AUD=D3 was little changed at $0.6437, having eked out a small 0.1% gain overnight to $0.6449. The $0.6450 level remained the near-term resistance, while support is at the 10-day moving average of $0.6416.
The kiwi dollar NZD=D3 was changing hands at $0.5921, after a 0.3% rise overnight to $0.5920. It has been struck between a $0.5880 and $0.5940 range in the past four sessions.
The two currencies have been largely at the mercy of offshore events, having been heavily sold off to fresh 2023 lows after investors' optimism about China evaporated. However, they have shown resilience in recent sessions amid signs that China's slowdown could be past its worst and hopes that the global tightening campaign is nearing an end.
Domestically, markets hold the view that the RBA is almost done with its rate hikes. Minutes of the September policy meeting showed on Tuesday that policymakers wanted more time to assess the impact from the past tightening as the recent run of data failed to alter the economic assessment.
"The minutes of the RBA's September meeting leant dovish, in our view, albeit only marginally so and not by enough to prompt a meaningful market reaction," said Robert Thompson, macro rates strategist at RBC Capital Markets.
"We remain of the view that the RBA may need to hike once more this cycle, but today's minutes gave us nothing to suggest that a hike is imminent."
Australian yields eased slightly. Ten-year benchmark government bond yields AU10YT=RR fell 4 basis points to 4.168%, while three-year yields AU3YT=RR held at 3.895%, little changed from the previous close.
