* Upbeat China lending data underpins Antipodeans
* Speculators pare Aussie short positions
* NZ retail data misses lofty forecasts
By Gyles Beckford and Cecile Lefort
SYDNEY/WELLINGTON, Feb 17 (Reuters) - The Australian and New Zealand dollars rose to one-month highs versus their U.S. counterpart on Monday, after data from China suggested the world's second-biggest economy may not be cooling as much as feared.
The Aussie
The latest bounce came after data on Saturday showed Chinese banks disbursed the most loans in any month in four years in January. China is the biggest export market for both Australia and New Zealand and upbeat figures tend to support the Antipodeans.
The Asian giant's next flashpoint will be HSBC's flash PMI survey of manufacturers for February on Thursday.
Also helping was data showing currency speculators pared Aussie short bets to around 47,000 contracts the week ending Feb. 11, from over 55,000 the week before.
The Aussie has failed three times in the past month to overcome formidable resistance around $0.9080-90, the 38.2 percent retracement of the October-January and this year's peak.
A sustained break could see a run towards 92 cents, though some dealers are sceptical.
"I expect the Aussie to struggle around $0.9100-$0.9150 because of the general bearish macro view (about Australia), particularly from the offshore community," said Dino Spinelli, head of FX sales at UBS.
"There is a view that the RBA will have to cut (interest rates) later this year."
Economists largely expect the Reserve Bank of Australia to hold rates steady at a record low of 2.5 percent over the course of this year, while interbank futures
The Australian dollar took a breather against the euro and yen following recent hefty gains but edged up versus its kiwi cousin.
It was last at NZ$1.0800
NZ RETAIL SALES
The New Zealand dollar
The kiwi was trading at $0.8374, having touched $0.8386, the best level since mid-January, before easing on softer-than-expected domestic retail data.
New Zealand consumers were not as free-spending in the fourth quarter as analysts expected, with retail sales volumes rising 1.2 percent against forecasts of 1.6 percent.
The data was consistent with other indications of strong momentum in the New Zealand economy, but also suggested some level of restraint in consumer behaviour, which could help limit rate rises.
"While the OCR (official cash rate) will be going up in fairly short order, ongoing restraint on the part of households is needed to reduce the amount of work the OCR will need to do," said ANZ senior economist Mark Smith.
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand is seen virtually certain to start raising rates from next month.
"Our expectation of a moderate OCR profile over the next few years assumes households do not go on a prolonged spending spree, forcing the RBNZ to step on the brakes more forcefully."
Other data showed service sector activity at a six-year high in January.
Near term kiwi support was seen at $0.8330 with offers around $0.8400/10 ahead of $0.8433, the high for the year.
New Zealand government bonds
Australian government bond futures fell with the three-year bond contract
(Editing by Chris Gallagher)
((Cecile.Lefort@thomsonreuters.com)(+61 2 9373-1234)(Reuters Messaging: cecile.lefort.thomsonreuters@reuters.net))
Keywords: MARKETS AUSTRALIA/FOREX