NZX responds to "please explain"

NZX stock ticker board above the Square Cafe in QEII Square. New Zealand Herald Photograph by Dean Purcell.

NZX, the stock market operator, said it doesn't know why its share price has declined, in response to a query from its disciplinary arm.

The New Zealand Markets Disciplinary Tribunal special division was alerted on Oct. 17 when shares of NZX fell 8.7 per cent over 20 days to $1.16 from $1.27.

The share price fell further to close at a two-year low of $1.14 on Oct. 20, which is 17 per cent below its June 20 close of $1.38, special division chairman Andrew Beck said in a query to the NZX.

"We are aware of no specific reasons for the price decline," NZX chief financial officer Bevan Miller said in a statement responding to the query.

He said the NZX had complied with listing rules requiring the timely disclosure of material information.

Shares in Wellington-based NZX gained 0.9 per cent to $1.16 and have shed 7.3 per cent so far this year.