18.10.202623:02:14UTC+00NZX 50 Extends Losses to Start the Week

The NZX 50 slipped 44 points, or 0.3%, to 13,710 in Monday morning trading, extending the previous session’s losses and hitting its lowest level since October 8. The index followed Friday’s decline on Wall Street, driven by ongoing selling in technology stocks. Investor sentiment was cautious ahead of the release of Q3 inflation data and a raft of key Chinese indicators due this week, including GDP growth figures. Risk appetite was further dampened by fresh data showing New Zealand’s trade deficit widened sharply in September, as imports grew faster than exports. The downside was partially limited by private-sector data for September, which showed overall activity at a three-month high, with manufacturing growth accelerating and the services sector continuing to expand. Financials, technology, real estate, and energy stocks were the main drags on the index, with notable declines in Mainfreight (-3.0%), Henderson Far East Income (-1.8%), Infratil (-1.6%), Gentrack Group (-1.5%), Channel Infrastructure (-0.9%), and F&C Investment (-0.8%).