Port of Tauranga closed at a record high after gaining 18c to $8.03. Its previous best was $7.95 in December 2019. Photo / Laura Smith
Led by resurgent retirement village stocks and Port of Tauranga, the New Zealand sharemarket made further gains despite a drop in business confidence.
The S&P/NZX 50 Index traded strongly in the afternoon and closed at 13,531.29, up 42.05 points or 0.31% after reaching an intraday low of 13,438.48.
There were 87 gainers and 51 decliners on the main board with 37.8 million shares worth $141.3m changing hands.
Greg Smith, investment specialist at Generate, said interest rate-cut fever was driving investor sentiment.
“The quarterly business opinion survey has got worse, and this adds to the case for a big reduction in the official cash rate. The market is prepping for a cut of at least 25 basis points, but 50 basis points can’t be ruled out – it’s probably what the economy needs,” Smith said.
The NZ Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) September Quarterly Survey of Business Opinion revealed a net 15% of firms expected an improvement in general economic conditions compared with 26% in the June quarter.
A net 23% of firms cut staff headcount in the September quarter.
The survey found that more than 40% of mortgages were due for refinancing in the next six months, and NZIER expected the reduction in interest rates to continue supporting a recovery in retail and services demand over the coming year.
In the United States, the Nasdaq Composite had its 31st record close this year and was again fuelled by the artificial intelligence (AI) stocks. Advanced Micro Devices rose 23.71% to US$203.71 (NZ$349) after cutting a multibillion-dollar deal with OpenAI to power the next generation of AI datacentres.
The Nasdaq was up 0.71% to 22,941.67 points and has increased more than 50% from a low of 15,267.91 on April 8. The S&P 500 was also in record territory, gaining 0.36% to 6,740.28 points, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.14% to 46,694.97.
Local stocks
Back home, Port of Tauranga closed at a record high after gaining 18c to $8.03. Its previous best was $7.95 in December 2019.
The retirement village stocks are having a new lease of life. Summerset Group, up 13c to $11.24 on trade worth $12.74m, reported a record 420 sales for the September quarter, comprising 244 new sales and 176 resales.
Summerset said 29% of the sales were care occupation rights agreements, an alternative to paying daily premium charges that has been welcomed by new and current residents.
The company is on track to deliver the forecast 650-730 homes by the end of the year, including village centre buildings at Cambridge and Cranbourne North in Melbourne. Construction of its fourth Victorian village, Oakleigh South, has just begun.
Ryman Healthcare increased by a further 18c or 6.67% to $2.88, and Oceania Healthcare gained 1.5c or 2.13% to 72c.
Smith said Ryman benefited from a positive read from Summerset’s record quarter for sales.
Market leader Fisher and Paykel Healthcare was up 53c to $38.18; Eroad rose 19c or 7.48% to $2.73; Skellerup gained 8c to $5.24; and Serko rebounded 9c or 3.38% to $2.75.Vulcan Steel increased 25c or 3.11% to $8.30; Scott Technology rose 19c or 8.26% to $2.49; Kiwi Property was up 2c or 1.83% to $1.115; and NZME gained 3c or 2.94% to $1.05.Gentrack was down 29c or 2.98% to $9.45; Scales Corp declined 15c or 2.58% to $5.67; and Synlait decreased 3.5c or 4.29% to 78c.
Auckland International Airport, up 2c to $7.91, has appointed Murray Burt as chief infrastructure officer. He was previously the director of infrastructure at Auckland Transport.
Genesis Energy gained 5c or 2.1% to $2.43 after telling the market it is ending its joint venture solar development with FRV Australia, although it will continue to co-own and operate the Lauriston solar farm in Canterbury, which began generation in November last year.
Blackpearl Group, down 3c or 2.62% to $1.11, has completed its $15m capital raising, with Australian institutional investors participating.
Being AI climbed a further 1.4c or 15.05% to 10.7c despite a price inquiry from NZX.
Being said it was complying with its continuous disclosure obligations. Its share price has risen from 5.2c on Sept 8, an increase of more than 100% in a month.
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