NZ sharemarket ends week in positive territory but volumes still light

New Zealand shares lifted 0.9% over the course of the week after a quiet Friday that mirrored offshore moves.

Friday, January 12th 2024, 6:14PM

by BusinessDesk

On Friday, the S&P/NZX 50 Index closed at 11,858.31, up 55.29 points or 0.47%.

There were 69 gainers and 61 decliners over the whole market, with 17.25 million share transactions worth $49.5m.

The market closed at 11,748.48 last week. “There’s not a lot of movement anywhere, with markets just coasting into the end of the week,” Grant Davies, investment adviser with Hamilton Hindin Greene, said.

Volumes were light on the local bourse, but “maybe as more people return from their holidays next week, we must start to see a bit more volume and maybe some direction,” he said.

After a weak start, Wall Street was largely flat after the latest US inflation data came in stronger than expected, shedding doubt on a possible March rate cut by the US Federal Reserve.

The S&P 500 ended down 0.07% at 4,780.24 points, while the Nasdaq Composite was flat at 14,970.18. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 0.04% to 37,711.02.

US headline December CPI rose 0.3% month-on-month, 0.1% higher than expected and up 3.4% year-on-year.

The US Federal Reserve’s federal open market committee will meet at the end of January and minutes of its December meeting indicated cuts were likely this year, although the path was uncertain.

According to ANZ Bank, the market is still pricing in a 64% chance of a March rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

“The market is well ahead of itself, pricing a high likelihood of a Fed cut by March,” the bank said.

Across the Tasman, the S&P/ASX 200 Index was down 0.1% at 7,494.30 at 5pm NZ time.

In NZ, Summerset was once again one of the strongest performers, adding 1.2% to $11.18 after it reported record sales in the December quarter this week.

“It’s been tracking up nicely on the back of that,” Davies said.

Ryman Healthcare, meanwhile, shed 0.9% to $5.83 and was the second most traded stock on the day, with 1,595,375 shares changing hands.

It was only outstripped by Geo, which fell 8.33% to $0.011, with 4,482,533 shares trading hands.

This week, Geo said it would hold a shareholder meeting on Jan 23 and seek approval to remove itself from the NZX.

Retailers were mixed as KMD Brands fell 1.33% to 74c, Briscoe Group was unchanged at $4.65, Warehouse Group added 2.55% to $1.61, Michael Hill International was unchanged at 96c and Hallenstein Glasson added 1.1% to $5.49.

Stats NZ will publish electronic card transaction data next Wednesday, revealing how retailers fared over the Christmas season. Davies said retailers may publish market updates, which could help set the tone.

Meanwhile, next Thursday, the Real Estate Institute of NZ will publish house price data for December, which may set the direction for Fletcher Building.

On Friday, Fletcher Building was unchanged at $4.85. Steel and Tube added 4.6% to $1.15.

Investors will also be looking at next week’s Global Dairy Trade (GDT) auction. The GDT index lifted 1.2% at the previous auction to an average price of US$3,363 (NZ$5,386) a tonne (MT).

Synlait Milk was unchanged Friday at 94c; a2 milk added 0.5% to $4.460, while the Fonterra Shareholders’ Fund unit advanced 2.4% to $3.42.

Kotahi, NZ’s largest shipping group, said on Friday exporters face a shipping surcharge of US$1,000 per container because of disruption at the critical Suez and Panama canals. The news may weigh on dairy exporters.

Tags: Market Close