Market close: NZ shares close on quiet note but Port of Tauranga, Ryman Healthcare rebound

A directionless New Zealand sharemarket closed the week on a quiet note while keeping an eye on economic developments offshore – though two blue-chip stocks Port of Tauranga and Ryman Healthcare completed nice rebounds.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index drifted from an early morning high of 13.136.63 to close at 13,064.39, down 31.37 points or 0.24 per cent. The index fell more than 2 per cent for the week.

There were 100 decliners and just 44 gainers over the whole market and trading was light, with 39.41 million shares worth $165 million changing hands.

Greg Main, Jarden wealth management adviser, said that with very little corporate news the market was just consolidating after a good run. There doesn’t seem to be a consistent theme in the market.

“It’s watching offshore and looking for direction on liquidity and interest rates. The impact of Covid may have taken the sugar rush out of the economies and growth may have peaked.”

Overnight the European Central Bank maintained its monetary policy of economic stimulus, but it did say it was slowing the pace of asset purchases under its pandemic emergency programme.

Main said the bank didn’t want to cut support in the near term before seeing what the United States Federal Reserve does.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 posted their fourth successive day of losses as investors struggled to reconcile a hot jobs market with soaring Covid-19 cases that have blunted the economy’s momentum.

That didn’t worry Rocket Lab on the Nasdaq Composite, rising another US$5.63 ($7.90) or 37.31 per cent to US$20.72 and more than doubling since going public on August 25.

Port of Tauranga, the country’s biggest port, rose 12c or 1.72 per cent to $7.10, and Ryman Healthcare, the country’s biggest retirement village operator, increased 20c to $15. Both stocks have been under selling pressure lately. Summerset Group Holdings was down 10c to $14.92.

Global marketer a2 Milk also bounced back, rising 7c to $5.71. Retailer Kathmandu Holdings gained 4c or 2.82 per cent to $1.46, and Air New Zealand was up 1.5c to $1.545.

Turners Automotive increased 9c or 2.04 per cent to $4.50. Port companies South Port New Zealand gained 10c to $9.50, and Marsden Maritime Holdings was up 8c to $6.64.

Infratil increased 13.5c or 1.81 per cent to $7.60 after telling the market it has invested US$233m in establishing Singapore-based Gurin Energy which will participate in new wind and solar energy projects throughout Asia.

Gurin has an initial pipeline of projects in the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and Japan capable of producing a combined 500MW of renewable energy.

Chorus has been volatile recently and the telecommunications network operator fell 20c or 2.84 per cent to $6.85.

Energy company Meridian was down 7.5c to $5.105; Trustpower lost 17c or 2.19 per cent to $7.59; and Vector decreased 8c or 1.93 per cent to $4.06.

Ebos Group declined 20c to $34; Mainfreight shed 54c to $94; Serko dropped another 11c to $7.69; SkyCity Entertainment fell 4c to $3.28; and My Food Bag was down 3c or 2.16 per cent to $1.36.

The interest rate-sensitive property stocks were weak. Investore fell 4c or 1.99 per cent to $1.97; Property for Industry declined 4c to $2.955; Stride was also down 4c to $2.61; Argosy shed 3.5c or 2.09 per cent to $1.64; Vital Healthcare Property Trust also decreased 3.5c to $3.09; and Precinct Properties was down 1.5c to $1.675.

Carpet maker Bremworth’s strong run slowed even more, falling 4c or 4.82 per cent to 79c; online personal lender Harmoney was down 6c or 2.99 per cent to $1.95; and seafood company Sanford lost 17c or 3.27 per cent to $5.03.

Other decliners were Rakon, down 6c or 5.13 per cent to $1.1; Heartland Group Holdings decreasing 4c to $2.24; Scott Technology falling 13c or 4.33 per cent to $2.87; and Pacific Edge shedding 3c or 2.11 per cent to $1.39.

Enprise Group, an investment vehicle for high-growth technology companies, fell 12c or 5.66 per cent to $2, after reaching $4 on July 23.

Synlait was down 5c to $3.10. The milk processor earlier told the market it has sold its Auckland property near the airport for $30.5m, after buying it in 2017 for $12.4m, and is leasing back the facilities for an initial term of 10 years.

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