NZX 50 Rises, Tracks Wall Street Higher

2026-04-22 22:56 By Chusnul Chotimah 1 min. read

New Zealand's stocks climbed 36 points, or 0.3%, to 12,981 in morning trade on Thursday, gaining for the third straight session and tracking a rally on Wall Street on Wednesday, as traders welcomed US President Trump's decision to extend a ceasefire with Iran.

Energy, consumer staples, real estate, and healthcare sectors mainly drove the index.

Sentiment was also lifted by a statement from the Labour Party pledging support for the India–New Zealand free trade deal, giving National and ACT the required numbers to pass it through Parliament.

However, a downgrade of New Zealand's outlook by Moody's, from stable to negative, due to global economic and political uncertainty, limited the gains.

The downgrade came after Fitch Ratings lowered the country's outlook to negative from stable in March.

Among early gainers were Henderson Far East Income (2.0%), Ebos Group (1.4%), Ryman Healthcare (1.4%), Auckland International Airport (1.0%), and A2 Milk (0.9%).



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NZX 50 Rises, Tracks Wall Street Higher
New Zealand's stocks climbed 36 points, or 0.3%, to 12,981 in morning trade on Thursday, gaining for the third straight session and tracking a rally on Wall Street on Wednesday, as traders welcomed US President Trump's decision to extend a ceasefire with Iran. Energy, consumer staples, real estate, and healthcare sectors mainly drove the index. Sentiment was also lifted by a statement from the Labour Party pledging support for the India–New Zealand free trade deal, giving National and ACT the required numbers to pass it through Parliament. However, a downgrade of New Zealand's outlook by Moody's, from stable to negative, due to global economic and political uncertainty, limited the gains. The downgrade came after Fitch Ratings lowered the country's outlook to negative from stable in March. Among early gainers were Henderson Far East Income (2.0%), Ebos Group (1.4%), Ryman Healthcare (1.4%), Auckland International Airport (1.0%), and A2 Milk (0.9%).
2026-04-22
New Zealand Shares End Slightly Higher
The NZX 50 rose 13 points, or 0.1%, to close at 12,946, reversing morning weakness while extending advances from the previous two sessions, tracking a rise US futures, buoyed by a statement from US President Trump, who announced he was extending a ceasefire with Iran. Utilities, financials, industrials, and tech sectors mainly drove the index. However, the failure of a second round of US–Iran peace talks and the US blockade on Iran limited gains, as New Zealand remains reliant on energy imports, while domestic inflation concerns persist after Q1 inflation beat market forecasts. Among the top performers were Freightways Group (4.1%), Mainfreight (1.9%), Gentrack Grop (1.5%), Briscoe Group (1.4%), Chorus (1.2%), Infratil (1.1%), Contract Energy (1.0%), and Auckland International Airport (0.9%).
2026-04-22
New Zealand Stocks Slip in Morning Trade
The NZX 50 dropped 45 points, or 0.4%, to 12,887 in Wednesday morning trade, halting gains from the previous two sessions and touching its lowest level since March 30, as it tracked an overnight decline on Wall Street amid uncertainty over the outcome of US–Iran peace talks. Traders also grew concerned about inflation following statements from Finance Minister Nicola Willis, who said inflation would be higher next quarter, amid the RBNZ’s focus on price stability. Tuesday’s data showed inflation stood at 3.1% in Q1, unchanged from Q4’s 1.5-year high and above forecasts of 2.9%, exceeding the RBNZ’s 1–3% target range. However, losses were capped after a statement from US President Trump, who announced he was extending a ceasefire with Iran. Industrials, consumer staples, and financials primarily dragged the index, with the biggest laggards being Meridian Energy (-1.1%), Port of Tauranga (-1.0%), Infratil (-0.7%), and Ebos Group (-0.6%)
2026-04-21