The S&P/NZX 50 Index in New Zealand marked its fifth consecutive day of rally today, with an increase of 142.3 points to 11,261.22. This upward trajectory followed Wall Street's gains due to optimism that the US Federal Reserve has concluded its cycle of interest rate hikes. Out of 186 securities on the NZX main board, 83 rose and 56 fell on a turnover of $97.4 million.
Travel software firm Serko led the local index higher with a rise of 4.9% to $4.25, alongside other tech companies. Other gains were witnessed in financial stocks such as Westpac and National Australia Bank (OTC:NABZY). Westpac experienced a 2.9% increase after announcing an increased dividend and an A$1.5 billion share buyback, despite an 18% decline in net profit from its NZ business and year-earlier benefits from Westpac Life.
ANZ Group and Heartland Group Holdings also gained traction in today's trading session, while the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is expected to raise the target cash rate by 25 basis points tomorrow. Markets have priced in a 66% chance of a rate hike on Melbourne Cup day.
NZ-listed companies with Australian exposures such as Fletcher Building and SkyCity Entertainment saw increases, as did National Australia Bank, the parent company of Bank of NZ. Blis Technologies had the biggest gain on the main board with a rise of 15%.
However, not all companies shared in the rally's success. Mainfreight reported the biggest decline due to pressures from shipping liner Maersk's grim quarterly earnings report and job cuts. Move Logistics also fell by 4.8%. Metro (TSX:MRU) Performance Glass posted the largest decline on the main board, falling 10.3% to 13 cents in relatively light trading.
Despite the mixed performance, high trading volumes were seen in Arvida Group, Air NZ, Spark NZ, and Auckland International Airport. Arvida Group remained unchanged at $1.15, Spark NZ rose 1% to $5.06, Air NZ fell 0.7% to 67.5 cents, and Auckland International Airport advanced 1.6% to $7.86.
In the technology sector, PaySauce increased 5% to 21 cents, and Rua Bioscience advanced 9.2% to 13 cents, contributing to the overall positive performance of the tech sector on the NZX main board today.
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