FX.co ★ New Zealand Stocks Begin Week with Slight Pullback

The NZX 50 index decreased slightly to approximately 13,220 during Monday's morning trading session, reversing the significant gains seen in the previous session. This downturn occurred as U.S. futures saw a decrease following Wall Street's record-high closings for the S&P 500 and Dow, which were supported by President Trump’s TikTok agreement with China, New Zealand's major trading partner. Investors exhibited caution ahead of the People’s Bank of China's decision on key lending rates, with particular attention on the loan prime rate, after three consecutive months of record lows up until August. Domestically, second-quarter figures revealed that New Zealand's economy contracted by 0.9% quarter-on-quarter, marking a reversal of two quarters of growth and falling short of the expected 0.2% decline. This contraction was primarily attributed to reduced activity in the manufacturing, construction, and export sectors, further impacted by technical adjustments to GDP figures. Additionally, annual GDP decreased by 0.6%, contrary to predictions for zero growth. The commercial services, healthcare, and electronic technology industries spearheaded the declines, with significant losses recorded by Eroad (down 2.1%), Fisher & Paykel Healthcare (down 1.6%), Infratil (down 1.1%), and Winton Land (down 0.9%).