FX.co ★ New Zealand Shares Inch Higher

New Zealand stocks saw a modest rise of 17 points, or 0.1%, bringing the index to 13,465 in Tuesday morning trading. This increase reversed the losses from the previous session, driven primarily by gains in consumer durables and energy minerals sectors. Improving investor sentiment can be attributed to the new central bank governor, Anna Breman, who assured a parliamentary committee on Monday that maintaining inflation stability and fostering growth are top priorities. She also committed to enhancing transparency in policy decisions. Additionally, weak November PMI data from China, a key trading partner for New Zealand, bolstered the market by raising expectations for new economic stimulus measures. However, the uptick was somewhat constrained as the Dow Jones and S&P 500 futures experienced a significant decrease due to a tech-driven selloff in Wall Street on December's first trading day. On the domestic front, the merchandise terms of trade for Q3 2025 dropped by 2.1% quarter-over-quarter, contrary to predictions of a 0.3% increase. In addition, New Zealand saw a decline in building permits in October, marking the first decrease in four months. Among the early market leaders were Property for Industry, which rose 1.7%, Turners Automotive at 1.5%, Chorus at 1.1%, and Meridian Energy at 0.9%.