There are concerns about the effectiveness of Tesla's autopilot tech. Photo / David Paul Morris
Keeping you up to date with the latest market moves, in association with Investment firm Jarden
New Zealand:
New Zealand markets traded lower on Monday as the NZX 50 fell 0.3 per cent to 12,720.2 points.
Consumer non-cyclicals was the only sector to post gains on Monday, advancing 4.3 per cent.
Milk processor and distributer the a2 Milk Company led the way with a strong performance to close Monday's trading up 11.4 per cent. New Zealand media mirrored reporting from The Australian, which published that global food giant Nestle had been keeping an eye on the company, and that multinational beverage company Kirin Lion had considered a2's assets in the past. Reports also mention that industry insiders do not expect any moves to be made on a2 until after it reports its annual result. A2 milk is trading well down on its all-time high of $21.13.
Similarly, retirement village operator Ryman Healthcare had a strong day, up 3.6 per cent.
On the flip side, financials (down 2.0 per cent) and utilities (down 1.4 per cent) were the laggard sectors of the day.
Weighing down index performance were Monday's underperformers, Pacific Edge Technology and Vista Group, which traded down 3.2 and 2.5 per cent respectively.
Gentailer Contact energy traded down 0.3 per cent after reporting its, largely pre-released, full-year results. Contact reported full-year EBITDA of $553 million. EBITDA guidance for the financial year 2022 was $520 million, which is a 1.8 per cent upgrade to consensus estimates.
In other news, NZX listed software company Plexure announced it had entered a conditional agreement to purchase a similar Australian platform - Task for A$120 million in a cash and scrip (share) deal. The deal looks to create synergies between the companies and if successful, task shareholders will own upwards of a 40% share in Plexure. Task CEO Daniel Houden would take over as the CEO of the newly combined company.
INTERNATIONAL:
United States:
The major US indices traded in the red this morning. Investors expect the Fed to start tapering its bond buying program soon, the announcement of which may come as soon as Wednesday. The S&P 500 was down 0.1 per cent, the NASDAQ declined 0.5 per cent, and the DJIA was flat.
Health and utilities were trying to push markets higher, increasing 0.7 and 0.6 per cent, respectively. Energy (-1.6 per cent) and consumer discretionary (-0.7 per cent) were underperforming at the time of writing.
Dexcom was the best performing stock of the S&P 500 this morning. The medical device producer increased 2.6 per cent. Dental equipment producer, Dentsply Sirona, was next in line, rising 2.2 per cent, followed by eBay. The online marketplace was up 2.1 per cent and hit a new 52-week high.
The worst performer, at the time of writing was Tesla, falling 4.5 per cent. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced on Monday that it opened a formal investigation into the Autopilot system of the electric car manufacturer. There has been a series of fatal crashes which led to at least 17 people getting injured and one death. The NHTSA identified 11 crashes where Tesla vehicles on Autopilot hit first responder vehicles as the technology seems to fail to recognise those parked emergency vehicles. The investigation covers an estimated 765,000 vehicles across models built between 2014 and 2021.
The lithium and other specialty chemical manufacturer, Albemarle, also underperformed, decreasing 4.4 per cent. Rounding out the top decliners was oil and natural gas company, Diamondback Energy, trading 4.0 per cent lower.
Rest of the World Markets:
The Asian indices were also underperforming. The Nikkei decreased by 1.6 per cent, the Hang Seng was down 0.8 per cent, the Shenzhen traded 0.7 per cent lower, and the Shanghai composite was flat.
Yesterday, China released economic data for July. The growth in retail sales was 8.5 per cent higher compared to last year July, however, this was below analysts' expectations of 11.5 per cent. Industrial production rose 6.4 per cent year-on-year, which was 1.4 per cent below expectations. The National Bureau of Statistics linked the slower growth to several factors, including the continued impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as recent flooding in the country.
Due to China's zero tolerance approach regarding the pandemic, even small outbreaks can lead to significant economic impact, as seen last week when an entire terminal at the world's third busiest port was shut, after one active case was reported by a port worker.
Commodities:
Gold increased 0.6 per cent toUS$1,788.50 per ounce.
Oil traded 1.6 per cent lower at US$67.36.
Cryptocurrencies hit new highs over the weekend, topping the US$2 trillion mark for the first time, as Bitcoin rallied to over US$48,000 on Saturday. This morning crypto performance was a mixed bag. Bitcoin was trading at US$46,514.90 and Ethereum was up 1.0 per cent to US$3,228.51
The US 10-year bond rate edged slightly lower, yielding 1.25 per cent this morning.
Australian Markets:
The ASX 200 fell 0.6 per cent yesterday. It was another day of record Covid-19 case numbers for New South Wales (478).
The ASX 200 was led into the red by the energy and academic and educational services sectors, falling 3.1 per cent and 3.0 per cent, respectively.
Beach Energy fell 9.9 per cent after reporting its financial year 2021 results. The results saw a 36 per cent fall in profit to AUS$363 million and a 4.0 per cent reduction in oil production.
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank also slumped by 9.9 per cent following the release of their own financial year 2021 results. While statutory net profit after tax rose to AUS$524 million (+172 per cent) and cash earnings after tax rose to AUS$457.2 million (+51.5 per cent), the cautioning of further Covid-19 restrictions and the impact of this on operations saw the share price fall.
On the flip side, consumer non-cyclicals increased 1.2 per cent and real estate rose 0.4 per cent.
Carsales.com increased by 3.9 per cent. It also reported full year 2021 results. Profit rose 11 per cent, with net profit AUS$152.8 million. The share price rise with this result was likely dampened by the mentioning of current Covid-19 lockdown impacts to the start of financial year 2022.
• 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>
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