Major Australian banks were broadly weaker after Bank of New Zealand-parent National Australia Bank fell short of expectations.
New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 index rallied late in the day to end the day in the green as Freightways led a broad-based gain on the local market, shrugging off a sharp decline for A2 Milk as the infant formula company launched a small recall of US products.
The major Australian banks were broadly weaker after Bank of New Zealand-parent National Australia Bank fell short of expectations with a flat profit, with credit quality back on analysts’ minds as the Middle East conflict threatens to derail the trans-Tasman economies.
Fletcher Building nudged higher amid reports that bids are coming due on its residential property division, while the power companies were mixed after the Electricity Authority ended an investigation into pricing and contract access for business users.
And Financial Markets Authority chair Craig Stobo stepped down from the regulator after an independent review into his conduct found his public comments fell short of political neutrality standards.
The NZX50 rose 58.48 points, or 0.5%, to 13,097.68, as 32 stocks gained, 13 fell and five were unchanged. Turnover across the main board was $144.8 million, of which A2 Milk accounted for $21.9 million as it sank 9.6% to $8.05.
The infant formula company cast a shadow across the market for much of the day after saying it voluntarily recalled three batches of A2 Platinum USA label product which was sold in the US, due to the presence of cereulide. Synlait Milk, which made the product, said it was helping with the recall and had already stopped manufacturing the formula. Synlait shares rose 1.2% to 43 cents.
“At this stage it seems to be a rather minor recall,” said Peter McIntyre, an investment adviser at Craigs Investment Partners. “It’s not going to be good though – there might be some brand damage, a regulatory response and further supply chain disruption.”
The formula company’s slump was offset by a late rally on the benchmark index, as Freightways surged 4.3% to $13.35 to lead the NZX50 higher, with Sanford up 3% at $7.67 and SkyCity Entertainment Group advancing 2.4% to 64 cents.
The kiwi dollar’s weakness against its trans-Tasman counterpart – it traded at 82.12 Australian cents at 5pm in Auckland from 81.96 cents last week – bolstered firms with operations in Australia, such as Freightways, SkyCity and Mainfreight, which rose 0.8% to $61.50.
Fletcher Building, which also has sizeable Australian operations, gained 0.7% to $2.92 after the Australian Financial Review’s Street Talk column reported bids are due for the building materials firm’s residential division in the coming weeks, with Altered Capital, Love & Co and New York private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management said to be potential bidders.
Commercial landlords were generally stronger as the yield on the 10-year government bond fell 3 basis points to 4.66%, making their reliable dividends more attractive to investors.
Precinct Properties NZ gained 1.9% to $1.08, Property for Industry rose 1.3% to $2.39 and Kiwi Property Group advanced 1.1% to 95.5 cents.
Index heavyweights Fisher & Paykel Healthcare and Infratil also buoyed the benchmark, up 1.7% at $36.80 and 0.9% at $12.87 respectively.
Energy companies were mixed after NBR reported the Electricity Authority closed an investigation into pricing and contract access for business users due to a lack of industry engagement.
Meridian Energy rose 1.4% to $5.80 and Contact Energy advanced 0.6% to $9.70, while Mercury NZ was unchanged at $6.79 and Genesis Energy declined 0.8% to $2.44.
Across the Tasman, the S&P/ASX 200 index was down 0.4% in late trading, with energy stocks weaker and the major banks declining after NAB missed earnings expectations, falling 1.6% to A$39.195 in late trading and Commonwealth Bank of Australia slipping 0.4% to A$172.43.
Dual-listed Westpac Banking Corp fell 0.7% to $47.26 on the NZX ahead of its first-half result on Tuesday, while ANZ Group Holdings bucked the trend, rising 0.6% to $44.31. Heartland Group Holdings was unchanged at $1.14.
The Reserve Bank of Australia is due to review monetary policy on Tuesday and is expected to hike the target cash rate a quarter-point to 4.35%.
Vista Group International rose 1.1% to $1.90 after affirming its annual guidance, with tech stocks across Asia generally stronger as they followed a strong lead in New York on Friday. Gentrack gained 1.3% to $6.03, while Serko fell 1.3% to $1.58.
KMD Brands was the most heavily traded stock on the day with a volume of 6.8 million shares. The retailer dipped 1.6%, or 0.1 of a cent, to 6.3 cents.
The kiwi dollar rose to 59.19 US cents from 58.94 cents last week.
Reporting by Paul McBeth.
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