Property stocks rise while gentailers fall. Market edge up in quiet trading overall
The S&P/NZX50 50 Index increased 13.73 points, or 0.1 percent, to 10,836.5. Within the index, 28 stocks rose, 20 fell, and two were unchanged. Turnover was $87.8 million, with just two stocks trading on volumes of more than a million shares.
International leads were mixed as investors try to gauge the impact of volatile geopolitical threats, such as the potential impeachment of US President Donald Trump through to the protracted trade war between the US and China.
Investors have been drawn to stocks offering reliable dividends this year as the low interest rate environment has increased the attraction of defensive equities. That demand has underpinned the 23 percent gain on the benchmark index so far this year, which has been led by Meridian Energy, up more than 55 percent.
James Lindsay, a portfolio manager at Nikko Asset Management, said while the benchmark index was reasonably flat today, the gain so far this year was strong and added to the local market's run over the past decade.
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