Market close: New Zealand takes lead from overseas

Auckland International Airport shares were up 18c or 2.1 per cent to $8.75. Photo / Alex Burton

Retirement village operator Summerset Group, gaining nearly 3 per cent, led the way as the New Zealand sharemarket made a late turnaround.

A choppy S&P/NZX 50 Index traded in negative territory for most of the day and then suddenly had a late rise to close at 11,803.02, up 33.62 points or 0.29 per cent after hitting an intraday low of 11,736.02.

There were 76 gainers and 53 decliners over the whole market on light volumes of 17.57 million share transactions worth $58.06 million.

Grant Davies, investment adviser with Hamilton Hindin Greene, said the market was in a holding pattern.

“A lot of New Zealand won’t be back at work till next week and the market is very quiet. We are following the US markets which were broadly positive overnight — and Australia was the same. It’s no surprise that our market would turn at some stage,” Davies said.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 neared its all-time high of 4796.56 points after gaining 0.57 per cent to 4783.45. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 0.45 per cent to 37,695.73 points and the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.75 per cent to 14,969.65 as investors waited for the latest United States inflation data.

Across the Tasman, the S&P/ASX 200 Index has risen 0.5 per cent to 7505.9 points at 6pm NZ time.

ASB Bank has brought forward its forecast for the first Reserve Bank official cash rate (OCR) cut to August, six months earlier than its previous view.

The bank said gross domestic product last month was significant as it showed momentum in the economy was grinding to a halt more rapidly than earlier thought, in turn paving the way for the Reserve Bank to start lowering the OCR.

“The inflation outlook looks to be lower, although if non-tradable inflation remains stubbornly high, the Reserve Bank may delay OCR cuts until later this year/early 2025,” ASB said.

At home, Summerset Group reached a 16-month high after rising 28c or 2.6 per cent to $11.05 following its strong fourth-quarter performance. Summerset’s share price peak was $15.19, achieved on September 1, 2021.

Summerset earlier told the market the 360 sales for the quarter ending December was a record — there were 186 new sales and 174 resales. The 12-month result of 1103 settlements was also a record.

Of other retirement village stocks, Ryman Healthcare was up 3c to $5.88 and Arvida Group declined 2c to $1.20.

Auckland International Airport was up 18c or 2.1 per cent to $8.75; Gentrack rose 25c or 3.91 per cent to $6.65; Mainfreight collected 75c to $71.15; Serko increased 7c or 1.74 per cent to $4.10, and Goodman Property Trust added 4c or 1.78 per cent to $2.285.

In the energy sector, Mercury gained 7c to $6.62; Meridian was down 7c to $5.57; and Manawa declined 10c or 2.21 per cent to $4.43.

Vulcan Steel rose 27c or 3.35 per cent to $8.33; Winton Land increased 6c or 2.22 per cent to $2.76; Tower was up 1c to 61c; Just Life Group added 1.5c or 6.25 per cent to 25.5c; Bremworth gained 3c or 4.76 per cent to 66c; and AFT Pharmaceuticals improved 2c to $3.77.

In a newsletter to shareholders, AFT said it had finalised US Food and Drug Administration regulatory approvals for the intravenous and rapid dissolving tablet forms of Maxigesic pain medicine. The products will soon be launched in the lucrative US market.

Scales Corp fell 9c or 2.7 per cent to $3.24; Comvita declined 7c or 2.75 per cent to $2.48; Vista Group shed 4c or 2.44 per cent to $1.60; Fonterra Shareholders’ Fund decreased 8c or 2.34 per cent to $3.34; and The Warehouse was down 3c or 1.88 per cent to $1.57.

Sanford declined 7c to $4.03; Steel & Tube was down 3c or 2.65 per cent to $1.10; Solution Dynamics fell 10c or 6.25 per cent to $1.50; Private Land & Property Fund shed 7.9c or 5.41 per cent to $1.381; and NZ King Salmon Investments slipped 1c or 3.7 per cent to 26c after a solid run.

NZ Oil and Gas, up 1c or 2.74 per cent to 37.5c, told the market that operator Triangle Energy had found 12 new oil prospects in Western Australia’s North Perth Basin. NZOG has a 25 per cent interest in the oil field.