Helping hand from abroad adds positive note

New Zealand shares ended another eventful week on a positive note, spurred on by relief rallies in other Asia-Pacific markets. The S&P/NZX 50 Index gained 46.45 points or 0.42 per cent to 11,230.75. The index finished the week ahead nearly 1 per cent but is down 13.5 per cent for the year to date. It rose 2.5 per cent in October.

There were 74 gainers and 58 decliners on the main board but trading was light with 23.73 million shares worth $94.77 million changing hands.

The NZX index picked up in the afternoon when the offshore markets opened strongly. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index was up 0.25 per cent to 6874.9 points at 5.30pm NZ time; the Hong Kong Hang Seng had risen 5.7 per cent to 16,213.68; and the Shanghai Composite had climbed 2.09 per cent to 3060.31.

Jeremy Sullivan, investment adviser with Hamilton Hindin Greene, said there was a broad lift across the local market. “Swap rates came down slightly, and the Asian rallies also helped our market. The materials and energy sectors were stronger in Australia after being sold off recently.”

Sullivan said all eyes will now be on the Reserve Bank on November 23, when he expects a 50 basis points increase in the official cash rate to 4 per cent. “We are ahead of the Brits and the Americans in this regard.”

With all the volatility in the markets, investors have stayed more on the sideline, according to the latest NZX statistics. The value of on-market trades in October fell 35.6 per cent to $1.398 billion year-on-year, and total trades declined 34.9 per cent to 722,450. The daily average value traded was $114m, down 32.2 per cent, and daily average trades reached 36,123, down 34.9 per cent.

On a quiet day locally, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare rallied 15c to $19.50; Freightways was up 19c or 1.93 per cent to $10.01; Spark added 11c or 2.18 per cent to $5.165; Ebos Group gained 50c to $37.80; and Mainfreight collected $1.40 or 1.94 per cent to $73.40.

Retailer Briscoe Group increased 6c to $5.07 following its strong third-quarter performance; and The Warehouse Group gained 5c to $3.11.

In the energy sector, Contact was up 13c to $7.46; Vector increased 5c to $4.26; Meridian was down 7.5c to $4.74; and Genesis declined 5c to $2.79. Utilities investor Infratil gained 11c to $8.59.

Other gainers included Restaurant Brands, improving 13c or 1.81 per cent to $7.33; and NZME up 4c or 3.6 per cent to $1.15.

The a2 Milk Company slipped 9c to $5.90 after rising the day before.