The NZX 50 closed slightly lower at 13,525 on Wednesday, giving back early gains and pulling back from a near two-week high after two consecutive sessions of strength. Sentiment was dragged down by declines in logistics, utilities, and healthcare stocks, and weakened further after U.S. President Donald Trump cautioned that countries must not roll back recently negotiated trade agreements, warning of sharply higher tariffs if they do so.
On the domestic front, investors were awaiting upcoming January business and consumer confidence figures for clues on how the economy started the year. In Australia, January inflation came in slightly above expectations, reinforcing worries about stubborn price pressures and keeping inflation outside the Reserve Bank’s 2–3% target band.
Notable laggards on the New Zealand market included Third Age Health Services (-5.7%), Chorus Ltd. (-4.0%), Ryman Healthcare (-3.7%), and Meridian Energy (-3.1%).
