FX.co ★ New Zealand Shares Slip as November Begins

On November's opening trading day, the NZX 50 index declined by 19 points, or 0.2%, settling at 13,532. This downward movement ended a winning streak that extended over six trading sessions, as investors chose to lock in profits following the index's peak at a two-week high last week. In contrast, U.S. futures remained relatively unchanged following Wall Street's Friday session, which saw both weekly and monthly advancements, buoyed by Amazon's robust earnings report. Domestically, New Zealand reported a slight dip in consumer confidence for October, while market participants keenly awaited the release of Q3 labor market figures, especially after the unemployment rate ticked up to 5.2% in Q2—marking its highest level since Q3 2020—and the labor force participation rate dropped to 70.5%, its lowest in over four years. Mitigating these concerns, September data revealed a 7.2% month-on-month increase in building permits in New Zealand, the most significant rise in four months. Meanwhile, sectors such as electronic technology, consumer durables, and logistics experienced notable declines. Specifically, Winton Land Ltd. fell by 3.1%, Channel Infrastructure NZ by 1.1%, and Skellerup Holdings by 0.9%.