New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 index joined Australia lower as the fire at Viva Energy’s refinery in Geelong knocked energy companies on the other side of the Tasman and a resilient Aussie jobs market kept alive expectations for rate hike next month by the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Ebos Group was a drag on this side of the Tasman ahead of the health products maker’s big investor day next week and A2 Milk Co extended its slide since downgrading its earnings outlook, while the dual-listed lenders Westpac Banking Corp and ANZ Group Holdings were part of the bank selloff across the Tasman.
Fletcher Building dipped after reporting signs of improvement in its quarterly volume report, while warning that rising diesel prices threatened to dent earnings.
And Real Estate Institute of New Zealand figures showed house prices nudged up in March, even as sales declined and new listings continued to climb.
Marginally weaker
The NZX50 decreased 10.52 points, or 0.1%, to 13,066.06, with 27 stocks declining, 16 gaining and seven unchanged. Turnover across the main board was $171.9 million, of which Fisher & Paykel Healthcare accounted for $22.6 million as it increased 0.2% to $38.57.
Stocks across Asia following the positive lead in Wall Street, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 hitting a record, up 2% in late trading, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.3%.
The antipodes were among the laggards in the region, with Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index down 0.4% in late trading, with energy stocks knocked by the fire at Viva’s refinery and as Brent crude oil futures firmed, up 0.1% at US$95.05 a barrel at 5pm in Auckland.
Dual-listed import terminal Channel Infrastructure slipped 1% to $2.97on the NZX.
Australian banks were also weaker, with dual-listed Westpac down 2% at $48.59 on the NZX, while ANZ slipped 0.1% to $45.95. Heartland Group Holdings gained 0.4% to $1.17.
The kiwi dollar fell to 82.27 Australian cents at 5pm from 82.72 cents yesterday as resilient labour market data kept expectations intact for the RBA to hike the target cash rate in May. Bond traders are pricing in a rate hike by New Zealand’s central bank in July.
The kiwi traded at 59.14 US cents from 59.01 cents yesterday.
Ebos was the biggest drag on the local market, falling 2.4% to $22.30, with some selling by Australian investors ahead of the healthcare products firm’s investor day later this month.
Fletcher Building fell 0.7% to $2.96 after reporting volume growth for light building products and distribution and truss frames in the March quarter, while heavy materials were mixed.
The building materials firm said higher diesel prices could weigh on the bottom line, but that it was too early to assess the impact of the Middle East conflict.
“If the oil price goes lower it will help, but if it goes up it’s problematic, like it is for a lot of businesses,” said Greg Smith, investment specialist at Generate Investment Management.
Soggy housing
Fletcher’s residential continued to struggle in a soft housing market, with REINZ figures today showing the house price index up 0.2% in March from a year earlier, while sales volumes were down 0.1% from March 2025.
Retirement village operators, typically linked to the housing market, were weaker, with Ryman Healthcare falling 2.8% to $2.08 and Summerset Group Holdings slipping 1.2% to $8.60. Oceania Healthcare gained 0.7% to 72 cents.
Gentrack posted the steepest decline on the day, down 3.5% at $6.05, while Kiwi Property Group fell 3.2% to 90 cents. The a2 Milk Co extended its decline since warning of weaker earnings, down 1.7% at $9.23 today.
Hallenstein Glasson Holdings fell 2%, or 20 cents, to $9.84 after shedding rights to a 29 cents per share dividend.
Spark New Zealand was the most heavily traded stock on the day with a volume of 3.9 million shares, slipping 0.9% to $2.11.
Fonterra Shareholders’ Fund units posted the biggest gain on the day, up 7% at $6.945, extending gains from the $2 per unit capital return at the start of the week.
Chorus rose 2.9% to $9.70 after Forsyth Barr analysts reaffirmed their ‘neutral’ rating on the stock with a target price of $9.90 after the broadband operator said it expected an earlier retirement date of the old copper lines.
Contact Energy was unchanged at $9.49 after its latest monthly update showed inflows into the Clutha catchment were 85% of the average in March, with the scheme storage at 108% of the historical norm.
Meridian Energy rose 1.1% to $5.71, Genesis Energy gained 2.7% to $2.29 and Mercury NZ slipped 0.6% to $6.69.
Outside the benchmark index, Comvita rose 1.5% to 68 cents after announcing its $30 million capital raising at 65 cents a share on Wednesday, while Accordant Group was unchanged at 14 cents after shareholders approved the participation of the recruitment firm’s biggest investor in a $6.7 million capital raising.
Reporting by Paul McBeth.
Curious News
Thu, 16 Apr 2026
