NZD/JPY explained: the kiwi-yen pair and the Monday open
When the forex week opens on Sunday afternoon ET, it opens in Wellington and Tokyo is next. NZD/JPY is a pair born in those first hours.
At a glance
| NZD/JPY | |
|---|---|
| What it is | How many Japanese yen one New Zealand dollar buys |
| Pip size | 0.01 |
| One pip is worth | ¥1,000 per standard lot. In US dollars it depends on USD/JPY |
| Busiest hours (ET) | Asia, about 5 pm – 3 am |
| What moves it most | Risk mood, the RBNZ, the Bank of Japan, dairy prices |
| Trading hours | Sunday ~5 pm ET to Friday 5 pm ET |
Pip math, as an example. ¥1,000 per standard lot is about $6.67 if USD/JPY were at 150. A math example, not a forecast. Use the pip value calculator for today's number.
What moves it
- Risk mood. The kiwi tends to rise when markets feel confident. The yen tends to rise when they're worried. So NZD/JPY often swings with the mood, a smaller cousin of AUD/JPY.
- The RBNZ. Several decisions a year at 2 pm New Zealand time, roughly 8–10 pm ET.
- The Bank of Japan. 8 meetings a year, results usually in the US late evening.
- The carry trade. New Zealand rates have often been well above Japan's. Traders borrow yen to hold kiwi in calm times, and can unwind fast in fear.
- Dairy and China. Dairy is New Zealand's top export, and China is a big buyer.
- Japan's finance ministry, which has bought yen to slow its falls, in 2022 and 2024.
When it's busiest
Both home markets are in the Asia-Pacific region. Wellington opens first, around Sunday afternoon ET, then Sydney and Tokyo follow. Most of the pair's news lands between about 5 pm and 2 am ET. By the US morning it often drifts with global risk mood.
New Zealand's clocks move the opposite way to the US, and Japan's don't move at all. Over a year, the same Wellington release can land at different ET times. Our market hours tool handles it.
Its personality
- Thin. One of the smaller crosses. Spreads are often wide, especially near the daily rollover around 5 pm ET.
- Sunday gaps. The week's first prices come in thin trade, so weekend news can open as a Gap.
- Slow climbs, quick drops, like other carry pairs.
The first hour can lie. Sunday-evening prices are thin. Many traders let the Tokyo session settle before they treat a move as real.
Reading it with our method
- Daily chart first. Mark the last places price turned around. Name the trend.
- Skip the thinnest minutes: the Sunday open and the 5 pm ET rollover.
- Body close only. Thin trading leaves long tails.
- Size from the stop, using the dollar pip value. The lot size calculator keeps risk near 1%. Our risk management guide explains why related trades count together.
Common mistakes
- Trading the Sunday open before the spread settles.
- Stacking it with AUD/JPY. The two often move together: one idea, double risk.
- Holding into the RBNZ without knowing it's on tonight.
- Using $10 a pip. The pip is in yen. Convert it.
Questions
Why does NZD/JPY move with risk sentiment?
The kiwi tends to strengthen in confident markets and the yen in nervous ones. Paired, they often move with the market's mood.
When does the forex week open for NZD/JPY?
Around 5 pm ET on Sunday, when trading begins in New Zealand. Tokyo opens a couple of hours later.
How much is a pip on NZD/JPY?
¥1,000 per standard lot. In dollars that's ¥1,000 divided by the USD/JPY price.
Is NZD/JPY similar to AUD/JPY?
Often. Both pair a growth-linked currency with the yen and react to risk mood. Their central banks and exports differ, so they don't always match.
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