Sharemarket finishes higher after a roller coaster day

The New Zealand sharemarket and Fisher and Paykel Healthcare had impressive turnarounds following the initial shock of President Donald Trump’s wide-ranging reciprocal tariffs on imported goods into United States.

Thursday, April 3rd 2025, 7:53PM

by BusinessDesk

The S&P/NZX 50 Index fell as much as 1.3% early in the day but recovered to close at 12,338.57 up 18.38 points or 0.15%. The index reached an intraday low of 12,115.86 points.

As investors sat on the sideline digesting the tariffs impact and the new economic order, trading was lighter with 28.9 million shares worth $125.33m changing hands.

Trump announced a baseline 10% tariff for countries including New Zealand and Australia, and higher reciprocal tariffs for countries that are the largest contributors to the US trade deficit including China with 34% tariff, Japan 24%, India 26%, Taiwan 32% European Union 20% and Vietnam 46%.

Shane Solly, portfolio manager with Harbour Asset Management, said “you needed a hard hat on; it’s been a rollercoaster day. The tariffs were more than the market anticipated and strategy teams in the US have reduced the country’s near-term growth forecasts.

“We saw during the day local companies directly exposed (to the tariffs) coming out with updates and there was less of an impact for the New Zealand market. But it’s been a tough day for trade-sensitive stocks, and investors have been saying ‘where can I go for certainty’.

“But there’s still uncertainty. The tariffs are a starting point for countries to negotiate if they don’t retaliate. And there’s still the potential for industry-specific tariffs,” Solly said.

Market leader Fisher and Paykel Healthcare closed at $35.11, up 1c, after a volatile day with the share price trading as low as $32.60.

Fisher and Paykel said almost all its medical devices imported into the United States from Mexico are currently compliant with the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement which would unlikely attract a 25% tariff.

The company said it doesn’t anticipate a material impact from the US tariffs on its net profit for the 2025 financial year, which ended at the end of March. But its costs would likely increase in the 2026 financial year.

Fisher and Paykel said 45% of its volume is manufactured in Mexico, and in the first half of the 2025 financial year 43% of the company’s revenue came from the US. About 60% of the US volumes are supplied from Mexico, and the New Zealand and Mexico manufacturing facilities have spare capacity.

Skellerup, down 13c or 2.7% to $4.69, told the market that actions already taken to increase inventory held in-market, along with pricing and cost initiatives, “we do not expect the new tariffs to have a material impact on our 2025 financial year results.” Its net profit guidance of $52m-$56m remained in place.

Skellerup said 35% of revenue comes from sales in the US, with 85% of the revenue from products manufactured in New Zealand, Vietnam and China.

Delegat Group, down 1c to $4.34, said 52% of revenue was exports to the US and “we are working closely with New Zealand Wine Growers and our US distributors to fully understand the new tariff arrangements.”

Another wine exporter Foley Wines gained 2c or 3.33% to 62c.

Mainfreight, also caught in the tariff firing line, was down 40c $62.25; Meridian Energy decreased 12.5c or 2.14% to $5.71, and Infratil declined 25c or 2.44% to $10.

Vulcan Steel was down 20c or 2.25% to $8.70; T&G Global fell 8c or 4.62% to $1.65; Tourism Holdings declined 10c or 5.56% to $1.70; Air New Zealand shed 1.5c or 2.4% to 61; and Millennium & Copthorne Hotels NZ was down 9c or 3.77% to $2.20.

Synlait Milk gained 2c or 2.67% to 77c after reporting that a significant majority of the cease to supply notices had been withdrawn and it had milk supplies for the 2026 and 2027 financial years.

The dairy company said (new) farmers can still qualify for a one-off additional $0.20c per kgMS premium by withdrawing their notices by May 31.

Ebos Group gained 32c to $38.64; Serko was up 10c or 2.63% to $3.90; PGG Wrightson gained 9c or 4.59% to $2.05; and Scott Technology increased 6c or 3.55% to $1.75.

Property stocks improved as long-term bond yields decreased. Vital Healthcare Trust rose 5c or 2.96% to $1.74; Stride increased 2c or 1.77% to $1.15; Goodman Trust was up 2c to $1.91; Precinct gained 1.5c to $1.14; and Property for Industry added 3c to $2.17.

AoFrio (formerly Wellington Drive Technologies) increased 0.008c or 7.69% to 11.2c after telling the market that in the 12 months ending December its sales to customers in the US totalled US$9.1m, of which only US$0.5m worth of motor products was imported by the company itself. Customers take delivery in Vietnam and are responsible for importation themselves.

Tags: Market Close