New Zealand Shares Close Nearly 1% Higher

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose nearly 1% to close at 11,891 on Tuesday, rebounding from a two-day sell-off as risk sentiment improved slightly after the US expressed willingness to engage in trade talks with key partners.

This raised hopes for a de-escalation of global trade tensions.

However, Trump stated he would not suspend tariffs and threatened further increases on Chinese imports.

This poses a risk to New Zealand’s export-driven economy, especially since China, its largest trading partner, faces total tariffs of 54%.

Domestically, focus turns to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s policy decision on Wednesday, with a 25bps cut expected to reduce the official cash rate to 3.5%.

Among key stocks, gains were seen from Fisher & Paykel (+1%), Meridian Energy (+1.5%), Infratil (+2.5%), Mercury NZ (+2.8%), and A2 Milk (+2.8%).