Market Announcements
Market Summary
The price of oil came down and sharemarkets steadied yesterday, including New Zealand, following the big tumble on Monday. The S&P/NZX 50 Index reached a morning high of 13,277.42, then it softened in the afternoon and closed at 13,094.37, down 4.46 points or 0.03%. There were 80 gainers and 55 decliners on the main board with turnover of 40.55 million shares worth $173.4m. The index fell 3.11% the day before – the second biggest single-day fall in four years – after Brent Crude oil burst through the US$100 a barrel mark. But at 5.30pm NZ time it was trading at US$94 a barrel, down from US$117.4 the day before. And nerves were soothed.
Markets cooled after President Donald Trump said the war against Iran could be reaching its end. Across the Tasman, the S&P/ASX 200 Index was up 0.86% to 8673 points at 6pm NZ time. The Japanese Nikkei 225 had risen 2.52% to 54,059.43 points, and the Hong Kong Hang Seng had gained 1.56% to 25,804.7.
At home, Ebos Group was up 16c to $22.65; Scott Technology gained 8c or 3.48% to $2.38; and Summerset Group increased 25c or 2.48% to $10.35. But fellow retirement village operator Oceania Healthcare was down 3.5c or 4.49% to 74.5c. The dual-listed banking groups rebounded strongly, with ANZ up 60c to $44.14 and Westpac increasing $2.30 or 4.87% to $49.50. Serko gained 6c or 3.17% to $1.95 after narrowing its full-year revenue guidance to $119m-$121m, from the previous $115m-$123m. Serko also lowered its total spend to $121m-$123m, from $124m-$128m.
Winton Land was up 1.5c to $1.98 after receiving Fast-track approval to develop the Sunfield community near Papakura that includes 3854 homes including three retirement villages, 47ha industrial business park, 7.7ha town centre, 2.3ha healthcare precinct and a school.
Air New Zealand, down 0.5c to 46.5c, has suspended its earnings guidance because of the “unprecedented volatility” in global jet fuel markets which has seen the price surge from US$85 a barrel to $150-$200 during the Middle East conflict. The airline told the market it is 83% hedged against Brent crude for the second half of the 2026 financial year and it expected earnings to be broadly in line with, or modestly below, the first-half loss of $59m.
Global transport and logistics company Mainfreight declined $1.77 or 2.84% to $60.58; T&G Global fell 18c or 6.67% to $2.52; Briscoe Group shed 7c to $4.63; and Vista Group decreased 3.5c or 1.9% to $1.81.
In the energy sector, Contact was up 15c to $9.32; Meridian was down 8c to $5.39; and Mercury decreased 10c to $6.20. Port of Tauranga, unchanged at $7.85, told the market that the Environment Protection Authority has appointed an expert panel, the same as before, to consider its wharves extension application under the Fast-track system. The port’s original application was withdrawn because of an error in the fast-track legislation, and the panel will make its decision by September 7 following tangata whenua submissions on March 30.
Santana Minerals, up 0.005c to $1.02, said in its half-yearly report that construction of the Ophir-Bendigo Gold Project in Central Otago is expected to start late this year. The miner will receive its Fast-track Approvals decision by October 29.
AFT Pharmaceuticals, up 1c to $3.51, has told the market that the Court of Appeal has dismissed a claim by former contractor PBL Solutions for a share of profits from the use of topical skin medicine Pascomer. Californian electronics company Bourns now holds 65.58% of Rakon’s issued shares. Bourns has extended its $1.55 a share takeover offer of advanced manufacturer Rakon to April 13. Rakon was down 0.005c to $1.47.
Source: Business Desk
Australian Market Report
Ahead of the local open SPI futures were 24 points higher at 8719.
- close [Morningstar with AAP]: Australia's share market has pared some early gains, after US government indications the Iran war might end soon couldn't sustain buying in the afternoon.??
The S&P/ASX200 spiked more than 150 points in early trade on Tuesday, but the lead faded to 93.6 points by the close, up 1.09 per cent, to 8,692.6.
The broader All Ordinaries gained 100.6 points, or 1.14 per cent, to 8,924.2, clawing back just over a third of Monday's $90 billion wipe out.
The bounce came after US President Donald Trump claimed the Iran conflict was ahead of its initial four-to-five week timeline and after G7 finance ministers considered, but ultimately held off, tapping oil reserves to shore up crude supply.
Tuesday's rebound had been slightly disappointing, IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.
"A strong start, it came out of the blocks absolutely swinging, hoping to take back some of that $90 billion worth of damage that was done yesterday," he told AAP.
However, signs President Trump was potentially looking to de-escalate the conflict soon were encouraging.
"He does have the mid-terms coming up, and it won't look good if equity markets are getting poleaxed, and if inflation is going through the roof," Mr Sycamore said.
"It's great that there is now an off-ramp of sorts, but it doesn't quite fit the narrative yet that we we are heading towards a lasting peace."
Oil prices have been volatile, with Brent trading near $US91 a barrel after spiking above $US115 overnight, but still up more than 28 per cent since the conflict began.
Nine of 11 local sectors ended the session higher, as energy stocks tumbled 2.9 per cent and consumer staples faded 0.3 per cent.
Oil and gas giants Woodside and Santos each fell 3.5 per cent or more, while coal producers sold off but uranium stocks recovered from recent down ticks.
The raw materials sector snapped a five session losing streak with a 1.9 per cent bounce, as BHP shares rebounded to $51.23.
Gold stocks were broadly higher, as the precious metal edged up to $US5,169 ($A7,320) an ounce, boosting the All Ordinaries sub industry roughly two per cent.
The heavyweight financials sector jumped 1.3 per cent, shrinking from a 1.8 per cent advance at midday, as Westpac led all big four banks higher.??
Consumer discretionaries, IT and health care stocks also performed strongly, thanks in part to strong company level performances from Wesfarmers, JB Hi-Fi, Telix, Life360 and Telix Pharmaceuticals.
The spike in oil prices has given the Reserve Bank a lot to consider ahead of its meeting next week, but there was a strong case to hold off on any further hikes until May, AMP chief economist Shane Oliver said.
"The case for higher rates is that inflation is already above target and a further big boost to headline inflation to above 4 per cent will threaten higher inflation expectations," Dr Oliver said.
"The case to hold is that the boost to inflation may be brief if the war ends in the next few weeks and the negative impact on demand in the economy could lead to lower underlying inflation."
The Australian dollar is buying 70.77 US cents, up from 70.09 US cents on Monday at 5pm.
ON THE ASX:
The S&P/ASX200 rose 93.6 points, or 1.09 per cent, to 8,692.6
The broader All Ordinaries gained 100.6 points, or 1.14 per cent, to 8,924.2
The NZX 50 added 92.11 points (0.70%) to 13186.48
Companies commencing Ex-Dividend Trading Today (ASX 300):
Brambles Limited
Breville Group Limited
Cleanaway Waste Management Limited
Imdex Limited
Vulcan Steel Limited
Overseas Market Report
[Morningstar with Dow Jones]:
U.S. stocks ended mixed. The DJIA fell 0.1% to 47,706.51, the S&P 500 slipped 0.2% to 6,781.48 and the Nasdaq was unchanged at 22,697.10.
Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc VRTX surging 8.31%, Ciena Corp CIEN jumped 5.91%, and Corning Inc GLW lifted 5.56%.
The biggest decliners were Centene Corp CNC which dropped 16.00%, Fair Isaac Corp FICO fell 10.84%, and AppLovin Corp APP lost 7.66%.
Asia
Chinese shares closed higher. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.6% to 4,123.14 and the Shenzhen Composite Index lifted 1.8% to 2,729.82.
Hong Kong shares ended higher. The benchmark Hang Seng Index rose 2.2% to 25,959.90.
Japanese shares ended higher. The Nikkei Stock Average added 2.9% to 54,248.39.
India shares ended higher. The BSE SENSEX climbed 0.8% to 78,205.98.
Europe
Stocks in the U.K. finished higher. The FTSE 100 Index lifted 1.6% to 10,412.24. In Europe, shares closed higher. The Germany's DAX rose 2.4% to 23,968.63, and the France's CAC 40 gained 1.8% to 8,057.36
