Port of Tauranga shares dip on weaker outlook

A big dip in cargo volume in the first quarter of the financial year has taken the shine off Port of Tauranga’s full-year earnings outlook, expected to be in the range of $95 million to $107m.

The NZX-listed company, New Zealand’s biggest port and main export gateway, told its annual shareholder meeting yesterday that total container volume in the first three months fell 20.9 per cent. Containerised imports were down 23 per cent on the same period in the 2023 financial year.

In the three months to September 30, total trade volume was down 9 per cent, at 5.8 million tonnes.

Port of Tauranga’s share price fell after the early-afternoon earnings announcement and closed the day at $5.15, down 25c or 4.63 per cent.

Chief executive Leonard Sampson said a number of factors had contributed to the volume drop. He cited continued global economic volatility, coastal shipping changes, an early finish to the kiwifruit export season and a slow start to the dairy export season.

“Softening international commodity pricing and demand has had an import on some key exports as shippers have hit pause to instead focus on building inventory, or look for alternative international markets,” Sampson said.

A key factor in the slump in container volumes was changes in coastal vessel rotations resulting in containerised transshipment decreasing 31 per cent in the period. The big dip in containerised imports reflected weaker domestic consumption and increased rail costs.

Sampson expected some recovery in containerised imports before Christmas.

The port was expecting close to a record number of cruise ship visits this summer, with 112 booked. This compares with 88 last season. Pre-pandemic, the season record was 116 cruise ship visits.