SYDNEY, Nov 20 (Reuters) -
The Australian dollar made a three-month high and the New Zealand dollar neared a one-month top on Monday, gaining on bets that U.S. rates have peaked and getting an extra boost from a firm yuan, as they are often traded as proxies for the Chinese currency.
The Aussie AUD=D3 climbed 0.6% to a three-month high of $0.6555, extending a hefty gain of 2.4% from last week. It, however, faces heavy resistance at the 200-day moving average of $0.6592, and support is at around $0.6446.
The kiwi dollar also jumped 0.7% to $0.6034 NZD=D3 , just a whisker away from a one-month high of $0.6055 hit last Wednesday. It climbed 1.8% last week.
The two - which already benefited from a benign U.S. inflation report - moved higher on Monday after the Chinese central bank fixed the daily mid-point for the yuan at 7.1612 per dollar, its strongest level since August. The onshore yuan gained more than 0.3%.
The two Antipodeans are often retreated as liquid proxies for the Chinese currency yuan given their economies' reliance on the Chinese market.
"It does look as though the jump in the yuan played a key role in the Aussie's break to fresh highs since 10 August," said Sean Callow, a currency strategist at Westpac. The bank sees the Aussie to reach 66 cents by the year end.
Meanwhile, traders are looking ahead to two public appearances by the Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Michele Bullock this week and the release of minutes from the RBA's November policy meeting on Tuesday.
Markets still reckon the RBA's tightening campaign is all but over, although there is a 30% probability for one last hike in the cash rate to 4.5% early next year.
0#RBAWATCH Australian bonds pared back some of last week's stellar gains. Benchmark 10-year government yields AU10YT=RR rose 3 basis points to 4.495% after a weekly decline of 17 basis points, while three-year yields AU3YT=RR increased 4 bps to 4.116%.
