Large cap healthcare company Fisher & Paykel Healthcare dragged down the index, falling 7.9 per cent. The company published a guidance update for its 2022 financial year, stating an expected full-year operating revenue of $1.675 billion to $1.7b, compared with $1.97b last year. The company plans to release its full-year results on May 25.
Fonterra Shareholders Fund declined 2.5 per cent yesterday, following a volatile week.
Rounding out the bottom movers was film technology company Vista Group, falling 2.2 per cent.
KMD Brands (formerly Kathmandu Holdings) reported a total net loss of $5.5 million for the first six months to 31 January 2022, down 124.7 per cent compared to the same period a year earlier. Underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were $10.2m, down from $48.2m for the period last year. KMD Brands stated Covid-19 lockdowns in the first quarter and supply chain disruptions as major reasons for the decline but saw a rebound in the second quarter. The company added it had strong forward orders. The share price was flat yesterday.
Air New Zealand is launching a direct route from Auckland to New York on September 17. The ultra-long-haul service will be one of the longest commercial flights in the world and will be scheduled three times a week.
The yield on New Zealand's 10-year Government Bond increased to above 3.3 per cent – its highest point since late 2016.
Yesterday, the Government announced the removal of vaccine passes and some mandates from April 4, as well as changes to the traffic light system from 11.59pm Friday.
International
US
All major US indices were in the red at the time of writing. The S&P 500 was down 0.9 per cent, the Nasdaq dropped 0.8 per cent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.1 per cent.
All but two of the sectors were in the red. These gainers were energy (+1.6 per cent) and utilities (+0.1 per cent). The biggest losses came from financials, health and consumer discretionary, each down 1.5, 1.5 and 1.0 per cent.
SolarEdge Technologies was the top mover, up 3.8 per cent. The photovoltaics company recently raised nearly US$600m ($858.8m) total gross proceeds, which it plans to use for general corporate purposes, including acquisitions if the opportunity arises.
Solar energy company Enphase Energy increased 3.5 per cent and steel producer Nucor rose 3.1 per cent.
Adobe was the biggest laggard, dropping 9.3 per cent at the time of writing. Adobe beat first quarter earnings estimates by 3 cents, reporting adjusted quarterly earnings of US$3.37 per share. However, the software company reported a relatively weak outlook, expecting a US$75m hit to its business from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Medical device company ResMed and commercial bank Signature Bank rounded out the laggards with declines of 9.0 and 6.8 per cent, respectively.
Aerospace company Boeing decreased 2.8 per cent as investors monitor the investigation into the plane crash in China earlier this week – which occurred with one of the company's 737 aircraft. According to Chinese state media, one of the two black boxes from the flight has been found.
Food company General Mills rose 2.3 per cent after its quarterly earnings announcement. The firm earned an adjusted US$84 cents per share and raised its full-year outlook.
Electronics retailer GameStop is up 10.8 per cent after chairman Ryan Cohen bought another 100,000 shares, taking his stake to 11.9 per cent.
Rest of the world
Asian markets rose overnight. The Shanghai Composite increased 0.3 per cent, the Nikkei gained 3.0 per cent, and the Hang Seng was up 1.2 per cent.
European markets were in the red. The FTSE was down 0.2 per cent, the DAX dropped 1.4 per cent and the CAC decreased 1.2 per cent.
Commodities
Gold traded 0.8 per cent higher to US$1,937.20 per ounce, while silver gained 1.2 per cent to US$25.19 per ounce.
Oil also performed well, rising 4.6 per cent to US$114.31 per barrel.
The cryptocurrency market was in the green despite Bitcoin and Ethereum both decreasing 0.5 per cent.
The US 10-year Treasury rate decreased four basis points to 2.339 per cent alongside a four-basis point decline in the 30-year rate, to 2.554 per cent.
Australia
The ASX 200 closed in the green on Wednesday, up 0.5 per cent at 7377.90 points.
10 of the 11 sectors finished higher yesterday, led by information technology and financials, up 3.5 and 1.0 per cent, respectively. The laggard of the sector was materials, down 0.4 per cent.
The top performer on Wednesday was telecommunications services company Uniti Group, increasing 10.7 per cent. This climb in share price follows reports by the Australian Financial Review speculating that Macquarie Asset Management and PSP Investments' have made a A$5.00 per share bid to edge Morrison and Co's A$4.50 bid.
Clinical-stage immune-oncology company Imugene rose 9.6 per cent. The Western Institutional Review Board has granted Imugene ethical approval to start Phase I clinical trial for its USA VAXINIA study, which aims to help patients with metastatic advanced solid tumours.
Rounding out the top movers was PointsBet Holdings, inclining 8.3 per cent.
Regenerative medicine company Mesoblast decreased 6.0 per cent and Champion Iron fell 3.4 per cent, closing out the bottom movers.
The Australian 10-year Government Bond yield reached a 52-week peak of 2.8 per cent on Wednesday, finishing at 2.77 per cent, which could be linked to rate hike suggestions in the US.
• For more information on the latest market moves, get in touch with Jarden.
Disclaimer: The Jarden Brief is provided for general information purposes only. It reflects views and research available 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. The Jarden 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 financial advice disclosure statement is available free of charge at https://www.jarden.co.nz/our-services/wealth-management/financial-advice-provider-disclosure-statement/ Full disclaimer available at: https://www.jarden.co.nz/wealth-sales-and-research-disclaimer
