"The market missed by a country mile. Everyone has been worried about a recession, inflation and rising interest rates, and there's been gloom and doom around the property sector.
"But the building sector isn't rolling over. Consent numbers and activity are still quite firm on both sides of the Tasman. Australia is also opening its border to unvaccinated travellers and this shows they are really re-opening," said Smith.
SkyCity Entertainment was down 12c or 4.1 per cent to $2.81 after telling the market that South Australia's gaming regulator is commissioning an independent review of its Adelaide casino as part of a wider look into the sector.
Retired Supreme Court judge Brian Martin will complete the review and report back by February 1 next year.
Smith said Australian operators Crown Resorts and Star Entertainment Group have been under the spotlight for operational failings and there's no suggestion that SkyCity has followed.
"The VIP segment at the Adelaide casino is smaller than the other operators, and I think the review is a bit more political for the sake of completeness," he said.
Leading local stocks had a better day. Fisher and Paykel Healthcare was up 25c to $19.80; Ebos Group gained 20c to $38.01; Mainfreight increased 95c to $69.95; Fletcher Building collected 7c to $5.02; and Freightways was up 8c to $9.20.
Contact Energy was up 8c to $7.15; Meridian collected 9c or 1.95 per cent to $4.695; Chorus increased 13c or 1.81 per cent to $7.30; Ryman Healthcare rose 21c or 2.4 per cent to $8.96; Infratil gained 15c or 1.99 per cent to $7.70; and Skellerup Holdings was up 8c to $5.28.
Milk operators a2 Milk was up 11c or 2.27 per cent to $4.95; Synlait increased 5c to $3.15; and Fonterra Shareholders' Fund rose 7c or 2.25 per cent to $3.18.
As more travel opens up, Air New Zealand climbed 3c or 5.13 per cent to 61.5c, and Tourism Holdings rose 8c or 3.42 per cent to $2.42.
Restaurant Brands was up 28c or 2.64 per cent to $10.88; Heartland Group Holdings increased 6c or 3.14 per cent to $1.97; Argosy Property gained 3.5c or 2.87 per cent to $1.225; Seeka was up 18c or 3.86 per cent to $4.84; and PGG Wrightson collected 10c or 2.25 per cent to $4.55.
Retailers Briscoe Group was up 19c or 3.65 per cent to $5.39, and Hallenstein Glasson was down 11c or 2.06 per cent to $5.24.
Napier Port rose 8c or 2.9 per cent to $2.84; Port of Tauranga was up 9c to $6.29; and South Port New Zealand was down 10c to $8.40.
Amongst the small caps, Solution Dynamics was up 8c or 3.48 per cent to $2.38; Millennium & Copthorne Hotels New Zealand gained 4c or 1.92 per cent to $2.12; and Private Land and Property Fund increased 3.6c or 3.02 per cent to $1.23.
Evolve Education gained 4c or 5.63 per cent to 75c; Pacific Edge increased 2c or 2.94 per cent to 70c; Scott Technology was up 8c 9or 2.8 per cent to $2.94; and Marlborough Wine Estates Group added 0.009c or 5 5.59 per cent to 17c.
New Zealand Oil & Gas declined 4.5c or 9.68 per cent to 42c; NZ Automotive Investments decreased 2c or 2.9 per cent to 67c; and New Zealand Rural Land Company shed 3c or 2.78 per cent to $1.05.
