NZ sharemarket ends flat as US Federal Reserve decision looms

The New Zealand sharemarket ended flat on Friday as investors took to the sidelines ahead of next week’s GDP data and an all-important rate call from the US Federal Reserve.

Friday, September 12th 2025, 6:35PM

by BusinessDesk

The S&P/NZX 50 Index ended at 13,277.90, down 1.24 points or 0.01%, with 40.69 million shares worth $130.6m trading.

There were 71 rises and 53 falls on the main board.

'Positive territory'

“The market is down slightly today [Friday] and is finishing the week basically flat,” Craigs Investment Partners investment director Mark Lister said.

“We’re up in September and up about 5% this quarter, and have edged our way into positive territory in the year to date, so it hasn’t been performing too badly.”

On Thursday, Stats NZ releases June quarter GDP data, which economists expect to show the economy contracted after gains in the previous two quarters.

Lister said the GDP data was likely to be ugly.

“But we’ve just got to remember that this is for the June quarter and we are in September now, and we’ve seen data like today’s electronic card transactions, which were halfway decent.

“All of those forward-looking indicators are actually telling us that things have turned a corner and we’re starting to see those early signs of an uplift.

“I think the markets will look past an ugly GDP report and will focus more on some of those more positive signs,” he said.

“We’ve just got to remind ourselves that that was probably the weakest point and to do our best to focus on some of those more up-to-the-minute indicators that do look a little bit better.”

There is also the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision on the same day.

“That’s the big event for international markets, so that’s what everyone is looking toward, and I think that will be a positive driver for investors,” he said.

The Fed has not cut interest rates this year, unlike many other central banks around the world.

“The Fed has been absolutely on the sidelines, so it’s quite a big deal that they resume that rate-cutting cycle next week, which is what people are expecting.”

Local stocks

Among the movements, Tower gained 2.5c to $1.75 after announcing an upgrade to its earnings forecasts for 2025.

The insurer now expects its underlying net profit to be in a range of $100m to $110m, provided that no large events are recorded this month, up from a previous guidance of $70m-$80m.

Out-of-favour Spark, which unveiled a five-year strategy called SPK-30 on Thursday, fell 7c or 2.9% to $2.37.

“It looks good on PowerPoint, but investors will want to see results, and they will want to see progress – they don’t get a free pass just for the flashy strategy document,” Lister said.

“It will take some time for Spark’s management team to win back the credibility that they’ve eroded in recent years.”

Takeover target Vital ended up 4.5c or 11.7% at 43c after the mobile radio networks company announced that Tait International’s bid had gone unconditional upon reaching over 90% in acceptances.

Dual-listed infrastructure services provider Ventia Services gained 12c to $5.68 after announcing that it had extended its facility management agreement with the City of Sydney over two years.

Robotics firm Scott Technology continued to enjoy a rerating – gaining 10c to $2.35 after laying out its strategic goals to the market on Thursday.

Tags: Market Close