FX.co ★ New Zealand Stocks Finish Nearly Flat

The NZX 50 finished Thursday’s session virtually unchanged at 13,825, recovering from early gains but holding near flat after the previous day’s losses. Strength in energy, industrials, and financials was offset by weakness in technology, communication services, and real estate stocks.

Market sentiment remained cautious as rising oil prices and ongoing uncertainty around US–Iran negotiations weighed on risk appetite. Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor Anna Breman recently warned that inflation pressures could intensify if elevated oil prices persist.

Investors were also on edge ahead of the Trump–Xi summit, with markets focused on potential discussions around artificial intelligence and trade tariffs. Externally, sentiment was further dampened by a negative lead from Wall Street, where major US indices closed lower overnight. A sharp rise in Treasury yields triggered a broad equity sell-off and reinforced expectations of an additional Federal Reserve interest rate hike.

On the local market, Briscoe Group dropped 4.2%, Gentrack Group slid 3.7%, ANZ Group lost 2.5%, and Mainfreight eased 0.7%. In contrast, Colonial Motor advanced 3.7%, Delegat Group gained 1.4%, and Freightways Group added 0.7%.