Across the Ditch, the S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.42% at 8876.60.
In the news
Fletcher Building sagged 0.62% to $3.22 as the market responded to a trading update from the company that flagged debt reduction and provided a full-year 2026 earnings outlook.
“They’re kind of tempering 2027 expectations, which is probably weighing on the share price a little,” Koreman-Smit told BusinessDesk.
SkyCity Entertainment bucked the otherwise ordinary session of trade, up 1.9% to 53.5 cents. The market liked a Forsyth Barr note anticipating stronger cash flow generation, and potentially dividend lifts further down the line.
Koreman-Smit observed that the market is sensitive to the first policy meeting of the new US Federal Reserve chair, Kevin Warsh, overnight on Wednesday (NZ time).
“The market is viewing the new Federal Reserve chair, Warsh, as more hawkish, [and] more likely to lift [interest] rates,” Koreman-Smit said. This has resulted in long bond rates in the US edging up.
REITs and gentailers
Stocks sensitive to long-bond yields, such as real estate investment trusts and electric utilities, were down slightly, though not uniformly.
Investore Property was 2.83% lower at $1.03, with Property for Industry, down 1.65% to $2.38, and Argosy Property, slipping 0.94% to $1.05, both following.
Meridian, down 2.68% to $5.82, and Vector, down 1.01% to $4.90, did likewise. On the plus side, however, Contact added 0.94% to $9.66, while Mercury rose 0.44% to $6.86.
Meanwhile, oil prices drifted down on the prospect of peace in the Middle East. There was some firming in equities responsive to general economic activity.
Among high-street banks, Westpac rose 1.26% to $43.30 but ANZ Group Holdings shed 0.93% to $41.76.
Heartland Group finished even at $1.23 as its shares consolidated recent gains after earlier profit-taking. Investors continue to place store in the proposed Heartland Bank acquisition of TSB Bank, and the Heartland Group share price reflects this.
A2 Milk, up 1.67% to $7.32, and Synlait Milk, up 2.5% to 41 cents, frothed higher after the global dairy prices dropped for a second time at the second auction of the GDT.
Among the infrastructure plays, Port of Tauranga added 1.59% to $8.29, while Auckland Airport tacked up 0.82% to $8.64 and Infratil shed 1.33% to $14.85.
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