FX.co ★ NZX 50 Halts Decline, Ends 0.2% Higher

The NZX 50 rose 22 points, or 0.2%, to close at 13,200 on Tuesday, reversing losses from both the morning session and the previous day, supported mainly by communication services and financial stocks. Investors were focused on Wednesday’s labour market data release, with consensus forecasts pointing to a slight easing in the unemployment rate to 5.5% in Q3 from 5.6% in Q2, the highest level since Q3 2015. Softer oil prices also improved sentiment by tempering inflation concerns and reducing the perceived risk of further interest rate hikes. Gains were limited, however, by a weak session on Wall Street, where technology shares continued to decline. Traders also monitored early voting ahead of New Zealand’s November general election, with nearly 1 million ballots cast in the first week. Notable movers included Fletcher Building (+2.6%), Westpac Banking Corp. (+2.4%), Chorus (+2.0%), Infratil (+1.5%), Vulcan Steel (+1.2%), Gentrack Group (+1.0%), and EBOS Group (-0.8%).