Market Announcements
Market Summary
The New Zealand sharemarket limped to a quiet end to the week, though the leading retirement stocks added a bright spot with another rebound. The S&P/NZX 50 Index had a choppy session and closed at 12,874.94 on Friday, down 9.99 points or 0.08% after reaching an intraday high of 12,926.28. The index declined 0.24% for the week and is down nearly 5% year-to-date. There was an even spread of 68 gainers and 68 decliners on the main board, and turnover reached 25.5 million shares worth $106.5m. The trading was dominated by utilities investor Infratil, which fell 16c to $12.22 on trade volume of $25.48m.
Utilities software provider Gentrack fell a further 55c or 8.66% to $5.80. The stock has fallen 47% over the past 12 months and is far from its peak of $14.25 in early December 2024. Fellow software stock Blackpearl Group declined 3.5c or 4.24% to 79c, having fallen from 97c during the week after providing a strong quarterly update with increased revenue.
Retirement village operators Ryman Healthcare increased 8c or 3.64% to $2.28, and Summerset gained 11c to $8.42. The Warehouse declined 3.5c or 4.96% to 67c; Third Age Health was down 10c or 1.98% to $4.95; Scott Technology decreased 4c or 1.77% to $2.22; and Rua Gold shed 4.5c or 2.44% to $1.80.
Infant formula supplier a2 Milk gained 17c or 1.9% to $9.13 after winning a court battle. The Federal Court of Australia ruled that Care A2 Plus infringed its trademark.
Chorus gained 16c to $9.87; Ebos Group was up 24c to $21.45; and Vulcan Steel increased 18c or 2.98% to $6.22. Comvita, up 0.005c to 67c, has opened its $30m rights offer at 65c a new share. The offer is partially underwritten by Singapore-listed Fraser and Neave, which will become a cornerstone shareholder with 19.9%.
Source: Business Desk
Australian Market Report
Ahead of the local open SPI futures were 4 points higher at 8758.
Monday 27 April 2026 - close [Morningstar with AAP]: Australia's share market has pared early losses on reports Iran has offered the US a solution to the Strait of Hormuz stalemate.
The S&P/ASX200 fell 20.1 points on Monday, down 0.23 per cent to 8,766.4, as the broader All Ordinaries dipped by 15.6 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 8,990.8.
The top-200 dropped to as low as 8,729.6 before rebounding on reports Iran had proposed delaying gridlocked nuclear talks with US officials until both sides had ended their respective blockades of the Strait of Hormuz.
"Iran has actually offered an olive branch of sorts, suggesting they're happy to prioritise the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and to end the naval blockade before deeper nuclear negotiations," IG market analyst Tony Sycamore told AAP.
"For me, it's going to be very difficult to see the US accepting anything less than a comprehensive deal, which includes both the Strait and Iran's nuclear weapons program, but the development was positive enough to support a solid rebound in sentiment today."
Basic materials was the only sector to push significantly higher, up 0.6 per cent on the back of decent performances for BHP, Rio Tinto and most gold miners.
Gold itself edged higher to $US4,715 ($A6,583) an ounce, as improving risk sentiment kept hopes of US interest rate cuts alive.
Energy and utilities stocks were the worst performers on the bourse, with Woodside and Santos slipping despite oil prices advancing during the session.
Coal miners, uranium stocks and refinery operators also tumbled in a broad-based sell-off.
Origin Energy dragged on utilities, as five per cent of its value was wiped after production and quarterly revenue dipped at Australia Pacific LNG and earnings guidance was downgraded at major asset Octopus Energy.
The heavyweight financials sector trimmed early losses to end the day 0.5 per cent lower, as CommBank and ANZ fell 0.8 per cent but NAB managed a slim uplift.
A rebound in blood plasma giant CSL helped the health care sector achieve a meagre bounce, as the segment continues to hover at decade lows after a disastrous 2026 financial year.
Consumer staples faded as Coles and Woolworths sold off after a strong performance the previous week.
The competition watchdog's dual case against the grocery giants will resume on Tuesday, as Woolworths continues to deny regulator allegations of illusory discounts.
Atlas Arteria outperformed the ASX200, charging more than 13 per cent on the back of a $7 billion takeover bid from IFM Investors.
Gold producer Resolute Mining was at the other end of the table, down 8.2 per cent after Blackrock unloaded more than 23 million shares despite a broadly positive March quarter update on Thursday.
The Australian dollar is buying 71.65 US cents, up from 71.23 US cents on Friday, with March inflation figures expected to show an uptick in price growth as market bets narrow on a Reserve Bank interest rate hike at next week's meeting.
ON THE ASX:
The S&P/ASX200 dropped 20.1 points, or 0.23 per cent, to 8,766.4
The broader All Ordinaries lost 15.6 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 8,990.8
The NZX 50 Lost -20.79 points (-0.16%) to 12854.15
Overseas Market Report
[Morningstar with Dow Jones]: U.S. stocks ended mixed. The DJIA slipped 0.1% to 49,167.79, the S&P 500 gained 0.1% to 7,173.91 and the Nasdaq lifted 0.2% to 24,887.10.
Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were SanDisk Corp SNDK surging 8.11%, Albemarle Corp ALB jumped 5.95%, and Micron Technology Inc MU lifted 5.60%.
The biggest decliners were Domino's Pizza Inc DPZ which dropped 8.84%, Dollar Tree Inc DLTR fell 5.54%, and Corning Inc GLW lost 4.48%.
Asia
Chinese shares closed higher. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.2% to 4,086.34 and the Shenzhen Composite Index added 0.5% to 2,756.68.
Hong Kong shares ended lower. The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 0.2% to 25,925.65.
Japanese shares ended higher. The Nikkei Stock Average gained 1.4% to 60,537.36.
India shares ended higher. The BSE SENSEX climbed 0.8% to 77,303.63.
Europe
Stocks in the U.K. finished lower. The FTSE 100 Index slipped 0.6% to 10,321.09. In Europe, shares closed lower. The Germany's DAX declined 0.2% to 24,083.53, and the France's CAC 40 dropped 0.2% to 8,141.92
