The top three performers on the NZX 50 all recovered from being the worst performers on Wednesday.
Synlait Milk rose 3.1 per cent, while Heartland Group, and cancer diagnostics company Pacific Edge each gained 2.2 per cent. Heartland Group this week announced the appointment of Kate Mitchell and Geoff Summerhayes as directors, effective 1 October.
Seafood company Sanford fell 5.7 per cent. This follows Wednesday's significant 21.4 per cent surge, following South Island Iwi Ngāi Tahu purchasing shares at a 23.6 per cent premium to Tuesday's close.
Vital Healthcare Property Trust lost 4.5 per cent and Kathmandu declined by 2.2 per cent.
Stats NZ released the NZ Terms of Trade for the quarter ending June 2021. The merchandise terms of trade rose 3.3 per cent. Notably, export volumes rose 2.9 per cent and export prices rose 8.3 per cent. This export price increase can, in part, likely be attributed to higher shipping costs related to Covid-19 delays globally.
International Markets:
US:
US markets were mixed this morning as the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average are currently trading up 0.1, and 0.2 per cent, with the Nasdaq down a touch, lower by 0.1 per cent at the time of writing.
Encouraging markets were US weekly jobless claims, as they hit their lowest level since March 2020. There were 340,000 filings for unemployment insurance for the week ended 28 August, coming in below consensus estimates.
Sector gains include energy and healthcare, each leading the way with 2.6 and 0.8 per cent increases.
These sector gains were well supported by the single stock winners, both oil and gas exploration and infrastructure companies Quanta Services (up 11.4 per cent) and Cabot Oil & Gas (up 7.2 per cent).
Quanta confirmed it would be acquiring Blattner Holding for US$2.7b as it looks to shift into the renewable energy space. The pair were also fuelled by the increased oil prices overnight, which spiked with optimism around a fast-tracked economic recovery.
In contrast, downward pressure on indices was drawn from sector losses in technology (down 0.6 per cent) and real estate (down 0.3 per cent).
Underperforming stocks included software company Autodesk, which fell 5.0 per cent on high trading volume amid a series of broker downgrades. Joining Autodesk was grocery store chain Hormel Foods Corp, which moved lower by 4.9 per cent. Hormel reported its third quarterly earnings overnight which failed to meet investor expectations.
Rest of the World Markets:
Asian indices were again higher overnight. Highlights include the Hang Seng, Shanghai Composite, and the Nikkei making gains of 0.2, 0.8 and 0.3 per cent at the days close.
Commodities:
In commodities this morning, Gold was trading down 0.2 per cent at U$1,812.8 per ounce. WTI crude oil pushed forward 2.3 per cent, now priced US$70.2 per barrel. Yields are trading slightly lower, with the 10-year now priced at 1.29 per cent.
Crypto currencies moved higher over a 24-hour period with Bitcoin modestly up 2 per cent to US$49,262.6 while Ethereum also increased, by 1.5 per cent to US$3,765.8.
Australian Markets:
The ASX 200 decreased for a second day in a row, closing 0.6 per cent lower.
Materials and healthcare stocks were dragging the market down, declining 2.5 and 1.1 per cent, respectively. On the other hand, information technology and energy were performing well, increasing 0.8 and 0.7 per cent, respectively.
Software developer, Altium, rebounded slightly from the losses made at the start of the week, closing 4.3 per cent higher. Clinuvel Pharmaceutical, a developer of skin disorder treatments, was also performing well on Thursday, continuing its upward rally, up 4.2 per cent. Rounding out the top performers was medical device producer, PolyNovo, recouping some of the losses made in the previous session, rising 3.8 per cent.
The biggest loser of the day was BHP Group, decreasing 6.9 per cent. The mineral exploration company went ex-dividend yesterday. However, the share price has already been on the decline over the last few weeks, about 22 per cent, as iron ore prices have slumped during that period. Additionally, the plans of unification between the London and Australian listed stocks have negatively impacted the price - especially BHP's Australian share price, as London shareholders are said to benefit more from the unification offer.
Next in line was malt producer, United Malt Group, declining 6.1 per cent. The company provided the market with a trading update and earnings guidance on Wednesday. It cited lock-down extensions and stringent restrictions as unfavourable for business in Asia and Australia. Including a new accounting pronouncement, which increased costs, the company expects an underlying EBITDA between A$123 - 128 million for the financial year 2021.
Mineral exploration company, Chalice Mining, closed 3.9 per cent lower, likely due to the sharp decrease in iron ore prices the night before.
