FX.co ★ Shares in New Zealand Rise After Two-Day Slide

In early trading on Thursday, New Zealand's stock market saw an uptick, with the NZX 50 climbing 37 points, or 0.3%, to reach 12,898. This rise broke a two-day decline and mirrored modest gains on Wall Street following Nvidia's earnings report and efforts by President Trump to influence U.S. monetary policy. Additionally, U.S. Treasury yields retreated ahead of crucial economic data releases, such as the PCE index on Friday, an indicator closely monitored by the Federal Reserve. The NZX 50’s growth was primarily driven by healthcare, logistics, and utility sectors, buoyed by expectations of potential policy easing by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand to support local economic growth, as hinted at by Prime Minister Luxon's recent comments. Nevertheless, the gains were tempered by cautious sentiment ahead of the release of August’s business confidence figures, especially after July's results showed a three-month high due to easing inflation and stable credit access. On the corporate scene, Air New Zealand reported a 15% decline in annual earnings, attributed to global engine maintenance issues. Key early gainers in the market included Summerset Group, advancing 3.7%; Ebos Group, up 3.4%; Hallenstein Glasson, rising 2.9%; and South Port NZ, increasing by 2.4%.