Market Announcements
Market Summary
The New Zealand sharemarket fell on Thursday following a significantly lower gross domestic product update than expected, while the United States Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the first time in 2025. The S&P/NZX 50 Index closed down 0.82% or 108.34 points, falling to 13,120.03 after 35.7 million shares worth $127.2m were traded. The S&P/NZX 20 index closed at 7551.33 points, down 1.07%, while the S&P/NZX 10 index ended the day at 12,607.12, falling 0.91%. There were 70 gainers on the main board and 64 decliners.
Stats NZ data showed NZ’s gross domestic product fell by 0.9% in the June quarter, a reduction well over market expectations of 0.3%-0.4%. The result increased the prospect of a 50 basis point cut to interest rates in October.
Infratil said that Australasian data centre operator CDC remains on track to double its FY2025 earnings by FY2027, but confirmed its own FY2026 guidance remains unchanged. Infratil’s share price fell 3.12% or 39c to $12.11 after 639,279 shares changed hands on turnover worth $7.77m.
Elsewhere, gentailers Mercury Energy, Meridian Energy, and Genesis Energy all had share price declines. Mercury saw its share price fall 12c to $6.65, Meridian fell 6c to $5.63, and Genesis fell 2c to $2.37.
Meanwhile, Freightways continued its positive run, with its share price rising 5c to $12.80 after 435,123 shares changed hands on turnover worth $5.5m.
Wall Street stocks finished mixed after the Federal Reserve announced its first interest rate cut of 2025 and signalled it could enact two more cuts this year. The moves corresponded to market expectations and followed recent economic reports showing weaker job growth that Fed Chair Jerome Powell said justified a greater focus on the Fed’s labour market mandate compared with inflation. Powell reiterated that additional interest rate actions would depend on upcoming economic data.
Source: Business Desk
Australian Market Report
Ahead of the local open SPI futures were 48 points higher at 8820.
- close [Morningstar with AAP]: Australian shares have ended the day lower as Santos led a plunge in energy stocks after yet another suitor abandoned plans to buy the oil and gas giant.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 fell 73.3 points, or 0.83 per cent, to 8,745.2, as the broader All Ordinaries lost 64 points, or 0.70 per cent, to 9,030.9.
Ten of 11 local sectors closed in the red as energy stocks tumbled more than five per cent after Abu Dhabi National Oil Company bailed out on a multi-billion-dollar Santos takeover.
"The falls came after reports emerged overnight Abu Dhabi had sensationally walked away from its $28 billion takeover bid for Santos just 48 hours before a binding, all-cash offer was due to be received by the South Australian-based company," IG Markets analyst Tony Sycamore said.
Santos shares plummeted almost 12 per cent to $6.74, while Woodside fell 6.3 per cent and Beach Energy dropped 4.5 per cent as oil prices edged lower.
The heavyweight financials (down 0.9 per cent) and materials (down 0.5 per cent) sectors also tracked lower, as CBA sold off and easing iron ore prices dragged on large-cap miners.
Commonwealth Bank shares fell more than two per cent to $164.33, their weakest close since April.
Investors took some profits in gold stocks as bullion slipped lower to $US3,635 ($A5,492) an ounce after hitting a fresh record high of more than $US3,700 overnight.
A US interest rate cut was broadly tipped to support bullion prices, but the US Federal Reserve's rhetoric and economic outlook proved less optimistic than analysts had hoped.
Australian tech was the only segment to finish higher, up 0.2 per cent, with strong performances by data centre play NextDC and tracking technology company Life360.
Health care stocks are on track for a fifth-straight week of losses as sector heavyweight CSL traded at less than $200 for the first time since May 2019.
The blood plasma giant has now lost more than a quarter ($36 billion) of its $133 billion former market value since its disastrous financial update in August.
The Australian dollar is fetching 66.22 US cents, down from 66.74 US cents on Wednesday at 5pm, after weaker-than-expected August jobs figures narrowed bets for further interest rate relief ahead.
Labour market weakness could render the Reserve Bank's measured approach to monetary policy potentially inadequate, eToro market analyst Farhan Badami warned.
"They have already delivered a 25 basis point cut, bringing rates to 3.60 per cent, but today's miss strengthens the case for more aggressive rate cuts," he said.
ON THE ASX:
The S&P/ASX200 fell 73.3 points on Thursday, or 0.83 per cent, to 8,745.2
The broader All Ordinaries lost 64 points, or 0.70 per cent, to 9,030.9
The NZX 50 Lost -11.53 points (-0.09%) to 13108.5
Overseas Market Report
[Morningstar with Dow Jones]:
U.S. stocks ended higher. The DJIA climbed 0.3% to 46,142.42, the S&P 500 rose 0.5% to 6,631.96 and the Nasdaq climbed 0.9% to 22,470.72.
Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Intel Corp INTC surging 22.77%, Synopsys Inc SNPS jumped 12.86%, and CrowdStrike Holdings Inc CRWD lifted 12.82%.
The biggest decliners were FactSet Research Systems Inc FDS which dropped 10.55%, Darden Restaurants Inc DRI fell 7.62%, and S&P Global Inc SPGI lost 6.54%.
Asia
Chinese shares closed lower. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 1.2% to 3,831.66 and the Shenzhen Composite Index slipped 1.2% to 2,480.19.
Hong Kong shares ended lower. The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 1.4% to 26,544.85.
Japanese shares ended higher. The Nikkei Stock Average lifted 1.1% to 45,303.43.
India shares ended higher. The BSE SENSEX added 0.4% to 83,013.96.
Europe
Stocks in the U.K. finished higher. The FTSE 100 Index gained 0.2% to 9,228.11. In Europe, shares closed higher. The Germany's DAX rose 1.4% to 23,674.53, and the France's CAC 40 gained 0.9% to 7,854.61
