The Australian market has enjoyed a strong run. Photo / Getty Images
Keeping you up to date with the latest market moves, in association with Investment firm Jarden
New Zealand
The NZX50 broke a two-day winning streak yesterday, falling 0.2 per cent.
The healthcare and energy sectors fell 2.5 and 0.8 per cent, respectively, in line with similar moves in
the US healthcare sector over the last few days. The top-performing sectors yesterday were consumer cyclicals, up 1.3 per cent, and industrials, up 0.6 per cent.
Kathmandu and Napier Port were outperformers of the NZX50 yesterday, each rising 3.1 per cent. There did not appear to be any obvious catalysts for these gains.
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare underperformed, down 3.3 per cent and leading the healthcare sector down. Port of Tauranga was the second worst performer, down 2.3 per cent and losing the majority of its gains made earlier this week.
The New Zealand Terms of Trade were released by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand yesterday. This is the ratio of New Zealand's export to import prices. New Zealand goods terms of trade rose 0.1 per cent in the quarter ended March 2021 on the previous December 2020 quarter, driven by export prices falling 0.8 per cent and import prices falling 0.9 per cent. Export volumes fell 1.9 per cent while New Zealand import volumes rose a significant 9.6 per cent in the first quarter of the year.
Tuesday night's Global Dairy Trade auction signalled a benign start to the 2021/22 season, with the auction finishing down 0.9 per cent. Prices were soft on futures expectations for the fifth consecutive time, although whole milk futures remained comfortably above the $4,000 mark right across the curve. We also saw some subdued demand from China compared to previous auctions, although this was compensated by increased demand from both the South East Asia and Middle East & Africa regions.
INTERNATIONAL
US
US Markets are mixed this morning as the S&P 500 remains unchanged, the Nasdaq is down 0.2 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average has made a slim gain of 0.1 per cent.
At the time of writing the leading sectors are Energy and Real Estate, outperforming by 1.6 and 1.0 per cent, respectively.
Oil related stocks were at the centre of attention for the second day running as soaring oil prices continue to prop up exposed equities. Schlumberger NV (an oil exploration technology provider) led the way with a strong performance so far this morning, up 7.2 per cent.
Online marketplace Etsy extended gains of 7.3 as the second best performer of the day.
On the flip side, Basic Materials (-0.9 per cent) and Consumer Cyclicals (-0.8 per cent) were the laggard sectors.
Weighing down index performance so far are steel manufacturer Nucor and retailer Tapestry Inc. Both stocks offset their respective outperformance on Tuesday, falling 5.2 per cent each.
Asia
Asian indices were mixed overnight. The Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite underperformed the region, dropping by 0.6 and 0.8 per cent, respectively, while the Nikkei bounced back from yesterday's losses, rising 0.5 per cent on the close.
In cryptocurrency related news, China will be handing out a small portion of its new digital currency in a lottery style giveaway as the country trials a digital version of the renmenbi which has been in production since 2014. 200,000 residents of Guangzhou will receive a share of the 40 million renminbi (US$6.2m) pool as the country contemplates the use of digital currencies as a future means of payment.
Commodities
Gold climbed another 0.3 per cent to US$1,909.8 per ounce. WTI crude oil continued momentum, up 1.5 per cent to US$68.74 per barrel after yesterday's record highs. US 10-year treasury yields continued to hover around 1.6 per cent, relatively unchanged.
Crypto currencies jumped this morning with Bitcoin rising 5.6 per cent to US$37,986.8 while Ethereum followed suit, making its own gain of 8.6 per cent to US$2,763.9.
Australia
The ASX200 rallied by 1.1 per cent in Wednesday's session, setting a new 100-day record.
The upward move was likely fuelled by the release of strong March quarter GDP numbers. The 1.8 per cent increase quarter-on-quarter was driven by business and consumer spending, supported by pandemic relief payments from the government. The Australian economy has now surpassed pre-pandemic levels, but economists have cautioned that growth would slow down going forward; in part due to the lockdown extension in Victoria, the slow vaccine rollout, and continued international border closure.
Most sectors were trading in the green. Energy stocks rose a healthy 4.1 per cent and the Utilities sector was up 2.6 per cent. The only two sectors underperforming were Information Technology and Health Care, decreasing 1.1 and 0.5 per cent, respectively.
The top gainers of the day were poultry producer Inghams Group Limited (+6.6 per cent), gas and petroleum producer Santos Limited (+6.5 per cent) and engineering company Worley (+6.5 per cent), on the back of its 2021 investor day.
Worley also announced that it has successfully issued a €500 million sustainability-linked bond under a Euro medium-term note programme. The bond has a five-year maturity, is priced at a yield of 0.99 per cent, and received a S&P rating of BBB.
The biggest loser on Wednesday was telecommunications provider Megaport Limited (-4.7 per cent), a moderation from its gains in the previous session. Meanwhile, infection control technology developer Nanosonics decreased by 3.5 per cent, followed by gold and mineral exploration company Regis Resources, down 3.0 per cent.
The lockdown in Melbourne has been extended for another week, while restrictions in regional Victoria will ease tonight. There will still be travel restrictions and business need to ensure that customers are locals, although schools will reopen. To support struggling businesses, the government has announced a further AU$209 million support package.
Coming up Today:
Initial jobless claims will be released later tonight in the US, which may be interesting to watch as a lead-in to the nonfarm payrolls numbers which has Wall Street on the edge of its seat (to be released tomorrow).
Retail sales numbers for Australia are also expected to be released today – an interesting number to gauge whether the demand for discretionary products has finished its run.
• For more information on the latest market moves, get in touch with Jarden.
Disclaimer: This Morning Brief has been prepared in good faith and reflects opinions and views at the time of publication, using external sources, systems and other data and information we believe to be accurate, complete and reliable at the time of preparation. We make no representation or warranty as to the accuracy, correctness and completeness of that information, and will not be liable or responsible for any error or omission. This Morning Brief is not to be relied upon as a basis for making any investment decision. Please seek specific investment advice before making any investment decision. Jarden Securities Limited is an NZX Firm, a broker disclosure statement is available free of charge at www.jarden.co.nz. Jarden is not a registered bank in New Zealand. Full disclaimer available at: https://www.jarden.co.nz/limitations-and-disclaimera>
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