TTR-parent Manuka Resources to join NZX; school holidays keep trading thin

Would-be ironsands miner Trans-Tasman Resources’ parent Manuka Resources is coming to the NZX, with the Australian-listed firm crossing the Tasman for a secondary listing next week.

Meanwhile, the S&P/NZX 50 index had a muted Monday with Ebos Group and Infratil weighing on quiet day, as the start of school holidays takes its toll on trading rooms.

More broadly Asian stock markets were mixed after the strong lead from Wall Street on Friday, with Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index buoyed as resources companies rallied on rising commodity prices, while India’s Nifty 50 was flat as the nation’s tech companies were chilled by the US cracking down on the specialty work visa favoured by Silicon Valley.

And prospective gold miner Santana Minerals gained as the company talked up the potential size of the untapped deposit, while also enjoying the precious metal hitting new heights.

School’s out

The NZX50 fell 90.12 points, or 0.7%, to 13,141.54, with 22 stocks declining, 23 gaining and five unchanged. Turnover was relatively light across the main board at $98.1 million, of which Auckland International Airport accounted for $10.7 million as it dipped 0.9% to $7.78.

“Volumes are exceptionally light, and we are in school holidays,” said Peter McIntyre, an investment adviser at Craigs Investment Partners. “Historically, that’s been a slow time for our market.”

Ebos Group led the benchmark index lower, falling 3.9% to $28.70, while Infratil was another heavyweight stock dragging the on the NZX50 as it fell 1.9% to $12.10. Among other blue-chip companies to decline, Mainfreight slipped 1.8% to $63 and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare fell 0.9% to $37.99.

Retailer KMD Brands decreased 2.1% to 23.5 cents ahead of its annual result on Wednesday, while a2 Milk Co dipped 0.2% to $9.58 after saying members of its executive team sold up to half the shares that vested from their 2023 long-term inventive scheme to cover the tax bill.

SkyCity Entertainment Group was the most heavily traded stock on a volume of 2.1 million as it ended the day unchanged at 66 cents, while Mercury NZ posted the biggest gain on the benchmark, up 2.9% at $6.68.

Getting resourceful

Stock market operator NZX slipped 1.4% to $1.37. After trading closed, an NZ RegCo notice said ASX-listed Manuka Resources will join the NZX next week in a foreign exempt direct listing. The firm is the parent of Trans-Tasman Resources, which has been trying to mine ironsands off the Taranaki coast for years in a highly disputed consenting process.

Resources stocks across the Tasman paced a 0.4% gain for the ASX 200 in late trading, with Rio Tinto and Fortescue among miners joining the rally as prices of iron ore, copper, lithium and gold continued to rise.

The NZX-listed Smart Gold exchange traded fund rose 1.3% to $3.418.

New Zealand’s would-be gold miner Santana Minerals climbed 2.9% to 89 cents on the NZX after saying the rise and shine deposit in Central Otago might be bigger than previously thought.

Stock markets across Asia were mixed as Friday’s gains on Wall Street didn’t immediately flow through into the new week. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index was up 1.2% in late trading and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.6%, while India’s Nifty 50 was marginally weaker in late trade.

Indian tech stocks such as Tech Mahindra, Infosys, and Tata Consultancy Services were among the hardest hit by the Trump administration’s US$100,000 fee for the H-1B specialty work visa favoured by US tech and finance firms.

The kiwi dollar traded at 58.58 US cents at 5pm in Auckland from 58.57 cents at 7am and 58.71 cents last week.

Reporting by Paul McBeth. Image from Curious News.

This story has been updated to correct Tata Consultancy Services name.