AstraZeneca is an important part of Australia's vaccine rollout strategy. Photo / AP
Keeping you up to date with the latest market moves, in association with Investment firm Jarden
New Zealand
The NZX50 closed slightly lower than the day before, decreasing 0.3 per cent.
Energy and financial stocks were the winners of the day, rising 1.6 and 1.2 per cent, respectively. On the flip side, consumer cyclical (-1.6 per cent) and consumer non-cyclical (-0.9 per cent) stocks were booking the biggest losses.
Outdoor retailer Kathmandu kept up its momentum and increased a further 1.9 per cent. Z Energy (+1.6 per cent) had a strong day following its shareholders meeting, correcting some of its losses incurred on the back of the government's news about the planned electric vehicle 'feebate' earlier this week. Joining the top performers of the day was Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corporation, which continued to gain another 1.4 per cent following the Phillips recall on Tuesday.
Fonterra was the biggest loser of Thursday's session, falling 4.6 per cent. Next in line was sport and entertainment media provider, Sky Network Television, decreasing 2.9 per cent after news broke that it had lost its broadcasting rights to the Rugby League to Spark Sport. Rounding out the worst performers was seafood company Sanford, down 2.8 per cent.
Yesterday, the government outlined its vaccination rollout strategy, revealing that under 35-year-olds might not get their vaccines before the end of October. The general public will start receiving vaccinations at the end of July and the process will be staggered via age groups starting with the oldest, as they are said to be at higher risk.
Quarantine-free travel between New Zealand and Victoria will resume from Tuesday June 22 at 11.59 pm according to COVID-19 Response Minister, Chris Hipkins – a slight extension to the previous announcement.
Statistics New Zealand announced 1.6 per cent GDP increase in the March 2021 quarter, a positive result following a 1.0 per cent dip in GDP growth in December 2020 quarter. The service industry was the biggest contributor, representing about two thirds of New Zealand's economy.
INTERNATIONAL
US
The US markets were mixed overnight as they continued to react to the Federal Reserve's policy meeting surprise that rate increases will occur earlier than expected, in 2023.
The S&P 500 was flat, the Nasdaq had fallen 0.6 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.9 per cent.
Technology and Information Services led the sector gains at the time of writing, up 1.2 and 0.9 per cent, respectively.
The largest underperformers were Energy and Financials, down 3.4 and 2.7 per cent, respectively.
Enphase Energy was the biggest gainer for the second day in a row, up 6.8 per cent. The solar power company continues to benefit from the general market trend to favour clean energy, with some analysts believing it to be more profitable and having greater levels of innovation than its nearest competitors.
Semiconductor company Advanced Micro Devices rose 6.4 per cent on the news that Google will put AMD semiconductor chips into its Tau Virtual Machines. Investors responded favourably to this news.
The underperformer at the time of writing was Occidental Petroleum, which had fallen 6.8 per cent. The international oil and gas exploration company has been hurt by the come down in oil prices, down 1.9 per cent overnight. Another underperformer to be affected by the dip in oil price was APA, which also fell 6.8 per cent.
Asia
The Asian markets had a muted reaction to the Fed announcement overnight, in the first trading session since the policy meeting result was announced. The Shanghai Composite rose 0.2 per cent, the Hang Seng rose 0.4 per cent and the Nikkei fell 0.9 per cent.
Commodities
Gold fell 4.4 per cent to US$1,779.40 per ounce, the largest intraday drop in over 10-months. Bitcoin fell 3.0 per cent, and Ethereum fell 4.6 per cent.
The US-10 year bond currently yields 1.496 per cent, reaching over 1.5 per cent then falling below it following the Fed announcement.
The oil price pulled back from earlier highs, down 1.9 per cent and trading at US$70.77.
Australia
Australian equities traded down with the S&P/ASX 200 finishing the day lower by 0.4 per cent at 7,359.0 points.
Markets reacted to fresh concerns over the safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine, with government officials bumping the minimum age of vaccination from 50 to 60 after 12 patients showed signs of blood clotting post-vaccination.
Australia is heavily reliant on the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine over other providers as it makes up most of Australia's vaccine supply. Although the scope of impacts are uncertain, further restrictions on the use of the vaccine and its rollout could threaten the current pace of economic recovery.
The only two outperforming sectors were Financials and Healthcare, which made gains of 0.7 and 0.3 per cent against the run of the tide.
Sector gains were buoyed by impressive performances from both Nuix and Netwealth Group.
Nuix was again in the headlines as the tech company traded up 6.2 per cent after investors weigh up the long term impact of Tuesday's management re-shuffle.
Investment management firm Netwealth was a direct benefactor of yesterday's shakeup to the current Australian superannuation schemes. In summary, the changes should increase overall investment flows from Australian citizens superannuation accounts, leading to an increase in fee revenue for Netwealth. The company's stock advanced 5.2 per cent, finishing as the second largest outperformed.
In contrast, downward pressure on indices was drawn from sector losses in Energy (down 1.9 per cent) and Materials (down 1.5 per cent).
The day's underperforming stocks consisted of Whitehaven Coal and Redbubble, each falling 11.5 and 7.9 per cent, respectively. Coal miner Whitehaven traded poorly after an operational update, while Redbubble traded lower despite limited news flow.
Coming up Today:
No planned announcements for New Zealand companies to close off a somewhat busy week.
Sydney Airport will be releasing its May Sales and Revenue figures, while UK Retail Sales numbers will be printed overnight.
• For more information on the latest market moves, get in touch with Jarden.
Disclaimer: This Morning Brief has been prepared in good faith and reflects opinions and views at the time of publication, using external sources, systems and other data and information we believe to be accurate, complete and reliable at the time of preparation. We make no representation or warranty as to the accuracy, correctness and completeness of that information, and will not be liable or responsible for any error or omission. This Morning Brief is not to be relied upon as a basis for making any investment decision. Please seek specific investment advice before making any investment decision. Jarden Securities Limited is an NZX Firm, a broker disclosure statement is available free of charge at www.jarden.co.nz. Jarden is not a registered bank in New Zealand. Full disclaimer available at: https://www.jarden.co.nz/limitations-and-disclaimera>