The New Zealand dollar was steady at $0.576 on Friday, hovering at its lowest level since April 11, pressured by a firming US dollar and rising expectations of domestic monetary easing. The greenback strengthened after better-than-forecast US economic data and cautious remarks from several Federal Reserve officials prompted markets to scale back bets on further rate cuts this year. Investors are now awaiting the release of the PCE price index later today for more clues on the Fed's rate path. At home, a run of weak economic data has led traders to price in deeper easing by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. Markets are fully priced for a quarter-point cut to 2.75% in October, with a 30% chance of a larger half-point move. Meanwhile, ANZ-Roy Morgan survey showed consumer confidence in New Zealand rose in September, suggesting that earlier rate cuts is beginning to feed through. For the week, the kiwi is set to post a loss of more than 1%, marking its second straight weekly decline.