NZ sharemarket closes flat as investors await US Federal Reserve interest rate decision

The New Zealand sharemarket closed flat on a quiet day on Wednesday, with attention focused overseas as investors await the United States Federal Reserve decision on interest rates.

Wednesday, September 17th 2025, 7:53PM

by BusinessDesk

The S&P/NZX 50 Index closed down 0.05% or 6.5 points, falling to 13,228.38 after 34.8 million shares worth $141m were traded.

The S&P/NZX 20 index closed at 7,632.79 points, down 0.24%, while the S&P/NZX 10 index ended the day at 12,722.28, falling 0.30%.

There were 68 gainers on the main board and 70 decliners.

Hamilton Hindin Greene investment adviser Jeremy Sullivan said markets were in a holding pattern before the result of the Fed’s meeting, set to be released at 6am NZ time on Thursday.

“It’s going to be a key catalyst for markets globally, and it’s not long for us to wait now until we see what everybody knows, which is a rate cut,” Sullivan said.

“The dot plot is going to be key, whether it’s four more cuts or three or five, and if there’s dissent within the ranks amongst the board.

“Markets could move materially if there’s any divergence from the current expectations.”

Sullivan explained that outside of California and AI-related industries, the US economy is “pretty weak”.

He said the Fed would have cut interest rates earlier, but President Donald Trump’s tariff regime forced it to delay any changes to account for any inflationary shocks.

NZ movements

Back on the NZX, Sullivan pointed to Seeka, which announced an upgrade to its earnings guidance to between $39m and $43m at a profit before tax level.

The company previously forecast profit before tax guidance of between $35m and $39m.

Seeka’s share price lifted 3.84% or 16c to $4.33 after 43,275 shares changed hands on turnover worth $187,698.19.

Dairy companies had mixed results after prices dropped slightly in the latest Global Dairy Trade auction, held overnight, with a 0.8% dip across the board.

This marked the third consecutive decline, following a 4.3% decrease at the previous auction and a 0.3% slide before that.

a2 Milk's share price fell 3.2% or 33c to $9.97 after 551,973 shares changed hands on turnover worth $5.5m.

Meanwhile, Synlait Milk’s share price rose 1.49% or 1c to $0.68.

The market's largest inhabitant, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, had a slight decline, dropping 0.21% or 8c to $37.45 on turnover worth $14.2m.

Ahead of the latest figures on NZ’s GDP tomorrow, Sullivan agreed with the consensus, forecasting a 0.4% reduction.

“The strongest sector in our economy at the moment is dairy and primary services. When you’ve got a 5% reduction in supply and prices coming off, it’s showing that demand is waning for our key exports.

“Soft back-to-back pictures lend to more rate easing in New Zealand, even with inflation hitting the upper end of the band.”

Wall Street watch

Wall Street stocks edged down from record highs on Tuesday following solid US retail sales data as markets hold their breath ahead of the Federal Reserve rate decision.

The US central bank is expected to cut interest rates on Wednesday (US time) for the first time in 2025, but markets are uncertain about what the Fed will signal regarding the likelihood of further cuts.

“It’s just kind of a wait-and-see move in front of the [Fed] decision, so not a lot of conviction behind today’s trade,” said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare.

The broad-based S&P 500 slipped 0.1% to 6606.76, retreating slightly from Monday’s record close.

The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index also slid from a record, losing 0.1% at 22,333.96, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.2% to 45,787.59.

Analysts see the recent string of US equity market records as the result of hopes that the US central bank will follow Wednesday’s interest rate cut with additional cuts in the months ahead.

– Additional reporting AFP.

Tags: Market Close