Sharemarket News

ASX CLOSE: Market closes session flat
10 Mar, 6:43pm
The ASX 200 closed the session flat at 4820 having traded as high as 4837.6 and as low as 4804. Defensive sectors came into play today as investors appeared to rotate out of the cyclical names that have pushed the market higher in recent weeks... More »

NZX CLOSE: Shares rise; Pumpkin Patch, MHI lead gains
10 Mar, 6:10pm
New Zealand shares rose, led by children’s clothing retailer Pumpkin Patch and jewellery chain Michael Hill International after a survey showed consumer confidence in Australia continues to track higher... More »

Kiwibank to offer tradeable preference shares to raise $100m
10 Mar, 6:00pm
Kiwibank is planning to raise up to $150 million in tier one capital early next month through an issue of preference shares, listed on the NZX... More »

Australian consumer sentiment keeps edging up
10 Mar, 3:40pm
Australian consumer sentiment has so far coped with increases in the central bank’s cash rate, though the point isn’t far away where confidence becomes much more sensitive to bank interest rate increases, according to the Westpac-Melbourne Ins... More »

Terms of trade rises more than expected on weak imports
10 Mar, 1:50pm
New Zealand’s terms of trade had its biggest jump since 1976 in the fourth quarter, as a decline in import prices outpaced an unexpected drop in exports... More »

Wakefield Health in trading halt
10 Mar, 12:50pm
Trading in shares of Wakefield Health on the New Zealand stock exchange has been halted this morning, "pending a material announcement"... More »

Satara earnings drop 24%
10 Mar, 12:40pm
Satara Cooperative Group posted a 24% decline in full-year earnings, as a poorer harvest reduced fruit volumes, prompting a focus on increased efficiencies, including new automatic fruit packers... More »

Dollar edges up before trade data and MPS
10 Mar, 10:20am
New Zealand’s dollar edged up against most currencies as the euro weakened and traders await local and Chinese trade data and the central bank’s release of its review of interest rates tomorrow... More »

Wholesale funding guarantee no longer needed: English
10 Mar, 9:50am
Trading banks will no longer have access to government-guaranteed wholesale funding after the scheme - a response to the 2008 global financial crisis - closes on April 30, Finance Minister Bill English announced today... More »

Stocks to watch: Allied, Fletcher, HED
10 Mar, 9:40am
Allied Farmers' recent writedown of Hanover/United investments may significantly dent what value Allied can draw from its newly acquired assets, while Fletcher Building says its outlook is dependent on the improvement in housing construction being sustain... More »

While you were sleeping: Investors in holding pattern
10 Mar, 7:20am
Shares were little changed for a second session as investors await fresh signs that the global economic recovery would renew itself and provide new impetus for higher stock prices... More »

Mid-sized New Zealand businesses move on from survival mode; road ahead may still be bumpy
9 Mar, 7:10pm
New Zealand’s mid-range business sector is showing encouraging signs of increased activity as the economy emerges out of the recession, according to an ANZ survey... More »

MARKET CLOSE: NZX 50 snaps 9-day rally; PFI, PPP fall, Pike gains
9 Mar, 7:00pm
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index snapped a nine-day rally, with the US market providing little overnight impetus and commodity prices weakening. Property for Industry and Pan Pacific Petroleum led the decline... More »

New twist in Horizon takeover saga as panel investigates directors
9 Mar, 4:20pm
Directors of the listed electricity network monopoly Horizon Energy Distribution are under investigation by the Takeovers Panel, following allegations of takeovers code breaches by a jilted suitor, Marlborough Lines... More »

Allied's $220 million write-down may understate recoverable loans
9 Mar, 3:50pm
A $220 million writedown by Allied Farmers of its recently acquired Hanover/United investments portfolio may not necessarily result in zero value being extracted from those positions, McDouall Stuart said in its market weekly update... More »

NZX unveils 'fundamental change' strategy, based on derivatives and clearing facilities:
9 Mar, 3:00pm
NZX expects 50% of its future revenues to come from fees on clearing and settlement services and high margins obtainable from derivatives trading, according to a presentation by head of traded products, Fiona Mackenzie, to investors in Wellington today... More »

Commerce Commission's restricts Curtin's role after private legal proceedings filed
9 Mar, 1:20pm
Donal Curtin’s role at the Commerce Commission has been restricted, to prevent any conflict of interest after further private party court proceedings were filed against him... More »

PostiePlus expects 'tidy profit' by year end, Boskell says:
9 Mar, 1:00pm
Postie Plus Group expects a “tidy profit” this year, after narrowing its first-half loss by gaining market share and lifting sales, chief executive Ron Boskell told BusinessWire today... More »

NZ consumer spending on debit, credit cards falls 0.4%
9 Mar, 12:10pm
New Zealanders spent less on debit and credit cards in February, the first decline in eight months, which may stoke speculation the central bank will be inclined to hold off on raising interest rates until the second half of the year... More »

Plus SMS slapped with fine, threatened with de-listing for improper reporting
9 Mar, 11:40am
Plus SMS Holdings, the mobile phone content provider suspended by the NZX last June, has been further reprimanded for improper reporting to the stock exchange with a $50,000 fine for rule breaches... More »