News

While NZX stocks were hit on the news yesterday, most have partially rebounded this morning – selling was broad based but the retailers such as Kathmandu (unfortunate timing with its winter sale) and property stocks (such as Kiwi Property) were hit hardes

Mining Giant BHP shares slumped yesterday, falling -7% making it the worst performer of the day despite revealing a solid underlying result.

Global markets were mixed overnight, as US markets (S&P 500 +0.3%) edged higher ahead of profit results due from the major global retailers – shrugging off news of weaker than expected economic data from China.

Global markets finished the week on a positive note Friday, as US markets (S&P 500 +0.2%) closed at record highs following mixed economic data – with investors becoming less concerned around inflation fears.

The consumer price index rose +0.5% for the month of July (as expected) and +5.4% for the year to July, which provided reassurance to the market that interest rates could remain relatively stable.

We remain BUY rated on QBE as it is still reasonably priced on a 13x price to earnings ratio, paying a dividend yield of 3%.

As widely anticipated, the US Senate finally passed the infrastructure bill, worth about $1 trillion with $550bn of new spending, seen as a political win for President Biden, but it still faces some hurdles to pass in the House before being implemented.

Global markets were higher overnight, with the US market (S&P 500 index +0.6%) at all-time highs as several solid earnings results boosted sentiment ahead of tonight’s monthly US unemployment data (nonfarm payroll report).

Positive US jobs data pushed cyclical stocks higher (Financials led gains +2.0%), while rising bond yields saw growth and defensive stocks underperform.