Market Announcements
Market Summary
The New Zealand sharemarket rose more than 1% yesterday – bringing hope that the traditional Santa Claus rally may be on its way. The S&P/NZX 50 Index climbed steadily throughout the day and closed at 13,508.3, up 174.9 points or 1.31%. This followed an increase of 0.58% on Friday. There were 99 gainers and 41 decliners on the main board, with 25.6 million shares worth $98.5m changing hands.
The Santa Claus rally, first recorded in 1972, is defined as the last five trading days of the year plus the first two in January. Even in years when the S&P 500 posted a negative performance earlier in December, the index still finished the Santa Claus rally period higher 77% of the time. Reuters reported that Nasdaq is seeking to extend trading hours to 23 hours a day, five days a week, with two daily sessions and a one-hour pause in between. The rationale is global demand to trade US stocks on local time zones, and the growth of overnight trading venues.
Across the Tasman, the S&P/ASX 200 Index had gained 0.99% to 8,706.9 points at 6pm NZ time. Back home, the rally was led by market leader Fisher and Paykel Healthcare, up 79c or 2.13% to $37.89; Ebos Group rebounding 53c to $28.06; Mercury Energy gaining 10c to $6.40; and a2 Milk rising 38c or 3.71% to $10.62.
Ryman Healthcare was up 9c or 3.15% to $2.95, and Summerset Group increased 39c or 3.29% to $12.26. Fletcher Building was up 11c or 3.06% to $3.71; Hallenstein Glasson increased 27c or 2.8% to $9.90; Skellerup gained 12c or 2.33% to $5.26; and Serko added 6c or 2.03% to $3.01. Property for Industry was up 5c or 2.16% to $2.37; Vista Group gained 5c or 2.02% to $2.53; T&G Global increased 6c or 2.62% to $2.35; and Blackpearl Group rose 3.5c or 3.63% to $1. Comvita, putting together a recapitalisation plan, was down 2c, or 3.77%, to 51c; 2 Cheap Cars fell 4c, or 6.72%, to 55.5c; and Third Age Health declined 18c, or 2.96%, to $5.91.
Michael Hill, unchanged at 38c, has refinanced its debt facility with ANZ Banking Group and a new lender, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, on improved margins for an additional two years to the end of August 2028. The existing facility limits continue, with the $90m core facility and the $20m seasonal uplift for four months from Sept 15 each year. Spark, unchanged at $2.24, has formed a partnership with ASX-listed Challenger Limited to establish a new financing structure for the interest-free payment plans Spark offers its customers to buy mobile handsets and other accessories. The new structure will reduce working capital carried on Spark’s balance sheet.
Source: Business Desk
Australian Market Report
Ahead of the local open SPI futures were 18 points higher at 8723.
- close [Morningstar with AAP]: Australia's share market has posted its best performance in three weeks thanks to a mining sector rally as gold hit a fresh record high.
The S&P/ASX200 rose 78.5 points on Monday, up 0.91 per cent, to 8,699.9, as the broader All Ordinaries advanced 82.4 points, or 0.92 per cent, to 9,000.7.
"With Wall Street closing firmly on Friday night and the rally spreading across Asia, today's gains signal that the traditional Santa Claus rally has finally kicked in," IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.
"The later start this year supports the view that the seasonal uplift is shifting - beginning later in December and extending deeper into January."
Almost all 11 sectors ended the day higher, led by a 2.3 per cent surge in raw materials stocks after gold prices hit a new record peak of $US4,397 ($A6,636) an ounce, buoyed by hopes of future US interest rate cuts and geopolitical worries.
The ASX gold sub-sector jumped 4.1 per cent on Monday, while silver and copper also hit new highs.
Iron ore giants BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue performed well as ore futures hovered about $US107 a tonne, while rare earths and battery minerals producers also lifted.
Lithium producer Liontown rallied 4.6 per cent to $1.53 after completing open-pit operations at its Kathleen Valley project to transition to 100 per cent underground mining.
All 11 local sectors ended the day higher, led by raw materials and a 1.5 per cent rebound in energy stocks after a heavy sell-off the week before.
Oil prices edged higher as the United States moved to intercept a third Venezuelan oil tanker in less than two weeks, supporting local names such as Santos and Woodside.
Coal miners were mixed, and uranium stocks were charging higher.
The heavyweight financials sector lumbered 0.3 per cent higher, tracking with gains in CBA and ANZ shares as NAB and Westpac traded flat.
Consumer discretionary stocks crept upward after Nick Scali shares rallied almost 10 per cent after the furniture retailer boosted profit guidance.
Health care stocks continued to claw back ground after falling to multi-year lows last week, up 0.6 per cent on Monday.
Aged care operator Regis Healthcare slipped 1.7 per cent after chief executive Linda Mellors resigned after six years at the helm, and is headed for an unrelated sector.
Telix Pharmaceuticals rose 0.7 per cent after reporting positive studies and regulatory steps taken with multiple products in China and the US.
Mayne Pharma tumbled 1.6 per cent, after a trading update revealed a 5.5 per cent reduction in revenues in the first five months of the 2026 financial year to $165 million.
IT stocks underperformed the broader market, up 0.2 per cent, as data centre player NextDC rallied more than six per cent after revealing a series of customer contract wins.
In other company news, Droneshield shares surged more than seven per cent higher following the set-up of mandatory minimum shareholdings for upper management and the board, after a sudden leadership sell-off prompted panic selling in November.
The Australian dollar is buying 66.26 US cents, up from 66.03 US cents on Friday at 5pm.
ON THE ASX:
The S&P/ASX200 rose 78.5 points, or 0.91 per cent, to 8,699.9
The broader All Ordinaries gained 82.4 points, or 0.92 per cent, to 9,000.7
The NZX 50 Lost -5.5 points (-0.04%) to 13502.8
Companies commencing Ex-Dividend Trading Today (ASX 300):
Ricegrowers Limited
Overseas Market Report
[Morningstar with Dow Jones]:
U.S. stocks ended higher. The DJIA gained 0.5% to 48,362.68, the S&P 500 rose 0.6% to 6,878.49 and the Nasdaq added 0.5% to 23,428.83.
Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were First Solar Inc FSLR surging 6.60%, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd NCLH jumped 5.34%, and Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc HII lifted 5.01%.
The biggest decliners were Seagate Technology Holdings PLC STX which dropped 4.56%, Dollar Tree Inc DLTR fell 4.18%, and Dominion Energy Inc D lost 3.72%.
Asia
Chinese shares closed higher. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.7% to 3,917.36 and the Shenzhen Composite Index rose 1.1% to 2,492.70.
Hong Kong shares ended higher. The benchmark Hang Seng Index added 0.4% to 25,801.77.
Japanese shares ended higher. The Nikkei Stock Average gained 1.8% to 50,402.39.
India shares ended higher. The BSE SENSEX lifted 0.8% to 85,567.48.
Europe
Stocks in the U.K. finished lower. The FTSE 100 Index dropped 0.3% to 9,865.97. In Europe, shares closed mixed. The Germany's DAX was unchanged at 24,283.97, and the France's CAC 40 was unchanged at 8,121.07
