FX.co ★ New Zealand Stocks Flat at Close

On Tuesday, New Zealand's leading index, the S&P/NZX 50, closed unchanged at 12,422. Although it remained near a two-month peak, it halted a three-day upward trend as investors grew cautious in anticipation of the Federal Reserve's forthcoming monetary policy decision. Contributing to the cautious atmosphere was the underperformance of China's services sector, which expanded at its slowest rate since September, suggesting that U.S. tariffs are profoundly impacting China. This development affected the index, given that China is New Zealand's largest trading partner. Domestically, attention shifted to the forthcoming unemployment figures, which are projected to reveal an increase in the jobless rate. Such an outcome could bolster arguments for the Reserve Bank to consider further policy easing. The index’s performance was mixed overall, with notable gains from Meridian Energy (+2.6%), Infratil (+4.4%), and Port of Tauranga. Conversely, significant declines were observed in Fisher & Paykel Healthcare (-0.7%), Contact Energy (-1.7%), and Vector Limited (-1.2%).