FX.co ★ New Zealand Stocks Snap 2-day Gains

New Zealand’s primary stock index, the S&P/NZX 50, experienced a decline of 0.3%, closing at 12,662 on Thursday. This downturn interrupted a two-day streak of gains. The local market mirrored the downtrend seen in Wall Street, driven by concerns over the potential increase in U.S. government debt, sparked by the possibility of Congress passing former President Donald Trump's proposed tax-cut legislation. Domestically, New Zealand is forecasting a budget deficit of NZ$14.74 billion, which is an improvement from the NZ$17.32 billion deficit predicted in the half-year fiscal update of December. Despite underlining the need for fiscal prudence, the New Zealand government cautioned that the ongoing global trade war could hamper the economic recovery of this trade-reliant nation. Among the major index players, significant decreases were observed in companies like Meridian Energy (-1.5%), Ebos Group (-1.6%), Mainfreight (-1.7%), and Spark NZ (-1.6%). The real estate sector also weighed on the market, with notable losses from Kiwi Property (-2.2%), Property for Industry (-2.1%), and Stride Property experiencing a lesser but notable decline (-1.7%).