The NZX 50 slipped 20 points, or 0.2%, to 13,703 in Tuesday morning trade, erasing gains from the previous session. The index was dragged lower mainly by weakness in the financial, communication services, technology, and utilities sectors.
Sentiment remained under pressure as rising oil prices, driven by escalating conflict in the Middle East, reinforced inflation concerns and expectations of further interest rate hikes. Investors were also cautious ahead of key data releases later this week, including US inflation figures and a batch of Chinese indicators, such as Q2 GDP.
Losses were partially contained by Monday’s domestic data, which showed New Zealand’s private sector growing at its fastest pace since December 2025. Still, the latest tourism figures pointed to some moderation: visitor arrivals rose 6.7% in May, after an 8% increase in April, marking the slowest growth rate in four months.
Among individual stocks, Infratil fell 1.9%, A2 Milk lost 1.8%, Ebos Group declined 1.7%, Fletcher Building dropped 1.4%, and Henderson Far East Income eased 0.6%.
