The New Zealand dollar fell today against its US peer as commodities retreated amid political turmoil in the European Union. The currency also dropped versus the Japanese yen after touching the highest level since August 2008.

The European political picture currently looks uncertain and that deters investors from riskier assets. The Standard & Poor’s GSCI Index, which consists of 24 commodities, declined 0.8 percent. On top of that, the ANZ Commodity Prices rose just 0.3 percent in January from a month ago, when they gained 1 percent. The prices were subdued by the strength of the New Zealand dollar.

The NZ dollar may yet gain strength from economic growth of its second major trading partner — China. The Chinese non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index stayed almost unchanged at 56.2 in January, indicating expansion of the sector.

NZD/USD fell from 0.8478 to 0.8425 and NZD/JPY dropped from 78.64 to 77.60 as of 23:21 GMT today.

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