NZ shares rise for fifth day straight

NZ benchmark equity index rose for the fifth consecutive day as it continues to climb out of correction territory.

Tuesday, March 16th 2021, 6:35PM

by BusinessDesk

The S&P/NZX 50 Index rose 96.79 points, or 0.8%, to 12,689.05. Within the index, 29 stocks rose, 16 fell and five were unchanged. Turnover was $183.1 million.

Local investors have been following a positive lead from US markets as the nation’s vaccination programme picks up speed, and as markets adjust to the higher bond yields.

“Sentiment was broadly positive as attention focused on the broader successes of the vaccine rollout and the prospects of a post-pandemic uptick in activity,” said Nathaniel Keall, an economist at ASB Bank.

Share markets were also supported by the US government’s two trillion-dollar stimulus package which is now finding its way into bank accounts, the economy, and various investments.

Stephen Innes, chief global markets strategist at Axi, said there had been an assumption that stimulus checks would flow into speculative investments such as bitcoin which rose above US$60,000 on the weekend but has settled down in recent days.

This could mean that “newly printed cash will find its way into the real economy now that restaurants, Vegas and beaches are reopening,” he said.

The parody cryptocurrency dogecoin, which has been on a tear lately, also saw a decline.

Interest rates remained elevated, but the stock market has been less sensitive to rates as central bankers have said they will keep monetary stimulus regardless.

Electricity generator Mercury NZ led the local market higher, rallying 5.3% to $6.35 as investors digested its purchase of Tilt Renewables’ NZ assets.

The utility is paying $770m for the local wind farms but is being paid $586.5m for its stake in the Australian generation assets. The purchase puts it on par with Meridian as one of the country’s largest wind farm owners.

Tilt’s current majority owner, Infratil declined 1.1%, to $7.375, as some investors took profit from the stock which is trading near its record high.

Briscoe Group continued its track record of under-promising and over-delivering by posting a $73.2m annual net profit ahead of an estimated $70m.

Briscoe will pay a 13.5 cents per share final dividend, taking the annual payout to 28.5c.

Shares in the company, which are still tightly held by owner Rod Duke, jumped 5.6% to $5.81.

Kathmandu Holdings declined 0.8% to $1.26, Briscoe Group holds a 6.8% stake in the adventure retail chain.

Sky Network Television posted the day’s biggest decline, down 4.4% at 17.4 cents.

The kiwi dollar was trading for 71.96 US cents at 5pm in Wellington, down from 71.99 cents yesterday.

The trade-weighted index was at 75.06 at 5pm, from 75.11 yesterday. The kiwi traded at 92.81 Australian cents from 92.89 cents, 78.55 yen from 78.56 yen, 60.30 euro cents from 60.22 cents, 51.88 British pence from 51.68 pence, and 4.6728 Chinese yuan from 4.6789 yuan.

Tags: Market Close