Market Announcements
Market Summary
Global infant formula supplier a2 Milk continued its rally, but the New Zealand sharemarket again lacked direction as employment confidence reached a low ebb. For the second day running, the S&P/NZX 50 Index reached a morning high of 13,515.19, but then drifted in the afternoon and closed at 13,435.77, down 10.28 points or 0.08%. There were 71 gainers and 58 decliners on the main board with turnover of 37.7 million shares worth $144.2m.
The latest Westpac-McDermott Miller Employment Confidence Index fell to its lowest level since the survey began in September 2004 amid concerns around the Middle East conflict. The index fell 12.5 points to 83.1 in the June quarter, and a net 60% of respondents felt it was hard to find a job at the moment, compared with a net 46% in the previous quarter Westpac said the loss of confidence was shared across all survey measures and most regions, ages, and income groups. This points to some renewed softness in the jobs data in the months ahead, after signs that the unemployment rate had passed its peak in the March quarter.
On Wall Street, the major indices were mixed as talks continued in Switzerland on the US-Iran peace agreement. Back home, a2 Milk rose 16c, or 1.94%, to $8.41, having gained more than 12% over three trading days. Market leader Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was down 61c to $37.61; Mainfreight eased 60c to $60.10; Serko declined 6.5c or 4.04% to $1.54; and Vulcan Steel decreased 21c or 3.38% to $6.01. Auckland International Airport decreased 16c or 1.88% to $8.36; Briscoe was down 11c or 2.31% to $4.65; and Napier Port shed 11c or 2.93% to $3.64.
Infratil was up 17c to $15.19; Chorus gained 21c or 2.15% to $9.97; Vista Group increased 9c or 3.91% to $2.39; and Comvita improved 2c or 2.9% to 71c. In the energy sector, Meridian was up 10c to $6, and Vector gained 12c or 2.47% to $4.97.
The retirement sector was brighter, with Summerset increasing 30c or 3.53% to $8.80; Ryman Healthcare up 4c to $2.29; and Oceania Healthcare gaining 2.5c or 3.31% to 78c. Kiwi Property, up 0.005c to 93.5c, confirmed its dividend guidance of 5.75c a share, up 2.7%, for the 2027 financial year. This represented average annual growth of 3.2% over the 2026 and 2027 financial years. Kiwi told shareholders at the annual meeting that it has completed $115m in land sales for large-format retail in Drury. “These transactions mean 77% of the land intended for large-format retail purposes is now under contract, which de-risks the project in a meaningful way.”
Argosy Property, gaining 0.005c to $1.06, said at its annual meeting that the ongoing volatility may continue to influence consumer sentiment and inflation expectations, “and negatively impact our tenants. “We acknowledge the possibility that some tenants may find conditions difficult, and we will continue to monitor arrears closely. Against this backdrop, leasing enquiry levels have remained encouraging, and Argosy remains well positioned.” Argosy’s dividend guidance of 6.65c a share for the 2027 financial year is similar to last year’s. The meeting backed a $56,500 reduction in total directors’ fees to $796,500 a year, effectively immediately.
Minerals Exploration, unchanged at 7.4c, reported that first-stage diamond drilling at the Hauraki Jubilee gold prospect has intersected quartz-mineralised zones in all eight holes completed to date.
Source: Business Desk
Australian Market Report
Ahead of the local open SPI futures were 19 points Lower at 8770.
Tuesday 23 June 2026- close [Morningstar with AAP]: Australia's share market has handed back an early improvement after the morning's optimism gave way to caution by the afternoon, ahead of key incoming economic data.
The S&P/ASX200 fell 29.1 points on Tuesday, down 0.33 per cent, to 8,787, as the broader All Ordinaries lost 42.9 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 8,988.3.
"The ASX 200 wiggled through most of Tuesday's session before slipping into the afternoon, as early optimism gave way to caution," Vantage senior market analyst Hebe Chen told AAP.
"Easing Middle East tensions and lower oil prices helped at the open, but investors shifted focus back to Australian inflation data and Reserve Bank rate risk, with weakness in tech and materials outweighing strength in banks."
Australia's mining segment has dropped for seven of the past nine sessions, as global growth concerns and a stronger greenback hit metals prices.
"The current funk may last in the near term as markets price in softer global demand, a firmer US dollar and lower geopolitical risk premiums - all pointing to a cloudier outlook for miners," Ms Chen said.
BHP and Fortescue both lost ground as iron ore futures fell to 16-week lows and as copper prices tumbled 2.5 per cent during the session.
Gold stocks were a sea of red as the precious metal buckled under the weight of an increasingly hawkish US interest rate outlook.
The precious metal is trading hands at $US4,116 ($A5,916) an ounce, on par with its price in late November 2025.
IT stocks have also fallen sharply, after US tech stocks slumped when SpaceX shares ran into gravity, and as South Korea's technology and semiconductor-dominated KOSPI index lost more than seven per cent in two sessions, as traders weigh AI hype against dizzying technology valuations.??
The fall in growth stocks came as interest rate markets upped their bets on US interest rate hikes, now tipping a 40 per cent chance of an increase as early as July.
The repricing sent the greenback higher against the major currencies, the Australian dollar now buying 69.53 US cents, down from 70.04 US cents on Monday at 5pm.
The heavyweight financials sector helped balance some of the losses, helping the segment clock its highest close since before the federal budget, IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.
"Markets appear to have taken some comfort from the government's revised tax package announced last week, which includes several important carve-outs," he said.
These included lifting the small business turnover threshold for capital gains tax concessions from $2 million to $10 million.
In company news, WiseTech shares tanked to five-year lows after announcing it wasn't aware of a reported federal probe into alleged improper conduct by billionaire founder and executive chair Richard White.
Mineral sands miner Iluka Resources was the top-200's worst performer, tumbling by more than a tenth despite striking a 10-year offtake agreement with a global automotive company.
ON THE ASX:
The S&P/ASX200 fell 29.1 points, or 0.33 per cent, to 8,787
The broader All Ordinaries lost 42.9 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 8,988.3
The NZX 50 Lost -10.28 points (-0.08%) to 13,435.77 while the Nikkei dropped -2565.58 points (-3.68%) at the time of writing, to be closed at 69,788.38
Overseas Market Report
[Morningstar with Dow Jones]: U.S. stocks ended lower. The DJIA fell 0.1% to 51,666.84, the S&P 500 slipped 1.4% to 7,365.46, and the Nasdaq dropped 2.2% to 25,587.04.
Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Axon Enterprise Inc AXON surging 5.64%, CDW Corp CDW jumped 5.28%, and GE HealthCare Technologies Inc GEHC lifted 5.06%.
The biggest decliners were SanDisk Corp SNDK which dropped 13.64%, Micron Technology Inc MU fell 13.18%, and Vertiv Holdings Co VRT lost 11.07%.
Asia
Chinese shares closed lower. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 1.4% to 4,106.25, and the Shenzhen Composite Index slipped 2.3% to 2,833.77.
Hong Kong shares ended lower. The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 1.8% to 23,336.28.
Japanese shares closed lower. The Nikkei Stock Average declined 3.5% to 69,788.38.
India shares ended lower. The BSE SENSEX fell 1.2% to 76,200.68.
Europe
Stocks in the U.K. finished lower. The FTSE 100 Index fell 0.1% to 1,0428.85.
In Europe, shares closed lower. Germany's DAX fell 1% to 24,893.58, and France's CAC 40 declined 0.7% to 8,340.71.
