by Paul McBeth
New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 index dipped as a2 Milk Co led the bourse lower after China’s economic growth unexpectedly fell short of the target range, while Summerset Group Holdings declined as the latest Real Estate Institute of New Zealand figures showed the housing market continued to drift in June.
Infratil offset the broader decline, joining gains among Australian data centre companies as tech stocks regained favour after softer-than-expected US inflation overnight cooled fears the Federal Reserve would hike interest rates.
Retailers were broadly stronger despite Statistics New Zealand data showing spending on credit and debit cards fell, with groceries the only category to rise in the month.
Skellerup Holdings eased from the record it touched on a profit upgrade, with Forsyth Barr analysts cutting their rating on the rubber goods maker while raising its target price.
Holding pattern
The NZX 50 fell for a third day, slipping 16.15 points, or 0.1%, to 13,635.07, with 25 stocks declining, 14 gaining, and 11 unchanged. The S&P/NZX 20 index futures contract for September was unchanged at 7,715, with no lots traded. The NZX 20 dipped 0.1% to 7,709.23.
Turnover across the main board was $106.8 million, of which Auckland International Airport accounted for $11.2 million as it increased 0.2% to $8.55.
The local market struggled for direction after a strong lead from Wall Street overnight, when a bigger decline in consumer prices allayed concerns that the Fed would have to hike the federal funds rate, reviving investors’ appetite for tech stocks.
That carried through across much of Asia, with Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index up 0.3% in late trading, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 1.4% and South Korea’s Kospi jumped 7.2%.
Still, Shanghai Composite was down 0.3% after China’s gross domestic product grew 4.3% in the June quarter from a year earlier, missing the target range of 4.5%-to-5% and slowing from a 5% pace in the first three months of the year.
The a2 Milk Co, which counts China as its biggest market, led the NZX 50 lower as it fell 2% to $8.40, while fishing group Sanford declined 0.9% to $6.75 and Fonterra Shareholders’ Fund units dipped 0.1% to $7.195.
The kiwi dollar held its overnight gains, trading at 58.16 US cents at 5pm in Auckland from 57.89 cents yesterday.
Retirement village operators were mixed after REINZ data showed a 0.8% dip in the national house price index and a 2.9% decline in the number of sales, as the housing market remains muted.
“The housing market is continuing to look K-shaped,” ASB Bank economist Wesley Tanuvasa said in a note. “We retain our view that it will, in aggregate, remain relatively dormant over 2026, with a non-negligible risk it could disappoint for a bit longer.”
Summerset slipped 2% to $8.55 and Oceania Healthcare was unchanged at 74.5 cents.
Ryman Healthcare gained 0.9% to $2.16 after Forsyth Barr analyst Will Twiss kept his ‘outperform’ rating on the company, while trimming its target price by 20 cents to $2.90 following the firm’s mixed trading update.
Great expectations
Skellerup fell from its Tuesday record, declining 1.3% to $6.80 as Forsyth Barr analysts Rohan Koreman-Smit, Paul Laxton Koraua and Sam Averill lowered their rating to ‘neutral’ from ‘outperform’, and lifted their target price 20 cents to $7.35 on the rubber goods maker’s upgraded profit guidance.
“The upgraded guidance was only slightly ahead of our top-of-the-market estimates, with the drivers broadly in line with our expectations based on our prior review of market data and key customer updates,” the Forsyth Barr analysts said in a note to clients.
Among the major drags on the NZX 50, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare decreased 0.6% to $39.53, Mainfreight fell 1.1% to $61.33 and Mercury NZ declined 0.9% to $8.40.
Spark New Zealand was the most heavily traded stock on the day with a volume of 2.3 million shares changing hands as the telco slipped 1.1% to $1.88.
Infratil helped buoy the index as it rose 1.3% to $15.38, joining Australian data centre operators and developers such as Next DC, Goodman Group and Macquarie Technology, while Hallenstein Glasson Holdings posted the biggest gain on the day, up 2.6% at $10.52.
Retailers were broadly stronger after Stats NZ’s electronic card spending data showed a 1.2% decline in expenditure, in part from lower fuel prices.
Bevan Graham, economist at Salt Funds Management, said the fall was particularly evident in durables and discretionary spending.
“Fuel prices are now lower, but risk heading higher again given renewed tensions between the US and Iran,” Graham said in a note. “Add higher interest rates into that mix and it looks set to remain tough going in the retail sector for the foreseeable future.”
Briscoe Group rose 1.5% to $4.88 and KMD Brands was unchanged at $1.665, while outside the benchmark index, Warehouse Group climbed 3.5% to 59.5 cents and Michael Hill International slipped 1.2% to 40.5 cents.
Paul is a staff writer for Good Returns based in Wellington.
| « NZX 50 drops as oil spike rocks heavyweights Auckland Airport, Meridian |
Special Offers
No comments yet
Sign In to add your comment
© Copyright 1997-2026 Tarawera Publishing Ltd. All Rights Reserved