New Zealand shares rallied as Tourism Holdings hit a record and Auckland Airport gained on its first-half earnings.
The S&P/NZX50 Index rose 61.98 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 8,125.31. Within the index, 23 stocks rose, 14 were unchanged and 13 fell. Turnover was $98 million.
Tourism Holdings led the index, up 6.5 per cent to a record $6.09. It has formed a joint venture with Thor Industries, the world's largest manufacturer of the vehicles, to develop a single platform to connect a wide range of services in the growing market for RVs.
Auckland-based Tourism Holdings will contribute assets and cash worth an estimated US$46.9 million ($63.2m) to the Cincinnati, Ohio-based TH2connect LLC joint venture, while Elkhart, Indiana-based Thor will contribute US$47m in cash. The business is expected to lose money in the first two years of operation as it focuses on growing customer numbers.
"Digitisation of some of their services was always seen as something of huge potential, but the fact they've brought in an expert and joint venture model is being applauded by the market," said Greg Easton, investment adviser at Craigs Investment Partners.