(RTTNews) - The New Zealand stock market closed sharply higher Tuesday, extending its gains for the third consecutive trading session. Wall Street’s rebound overnight and prospects of an interest rate cut by the central bank on Thursday buoyed investor sentiment. The benchmark NZX 50 index closed up 62.10 points or 2.15% at 2952.20 after rallying nearly 3% on Monday. The broader NZX All Capital index advanced 53.53 points or 1.82% to finish at 2,993.66.

In the currency market, the New Zealand dollar gained as appetite for riskier assets such as high-yielding currencies improved amid firmer global equity markets. The CPI data released today had only a minimal effect on the kiwi, as the market anticipates a 100 basis point interest rate cut by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand on Thursday. The kiwi finished the domestic session at US$0.6172-0.6177 compared to US$0.6119-0.6122 in late local trade on Monday.

Government data showed that annual inflation hit an 18-year high of 5.1% in the September quarter. Analysts said that inflation is likely to have peaked and that the rise would not stop the central bank from cutting rates aggressively at its policy meeting on Thursday.

In other economic news, credit card billings in New Zealand rebounded in September, although consumer spending remained under pressure, data released by the central bank data showed. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand said that total billings rose a seasonally adjusted 1.1% in September, its highest level in a year, following a 0.1% fall in August. Billings were up a seasonally adjusted 2.6% on year in the previous month and flat on the year to August.

Meanwhile, Statistics New Zealand said that food prices rose 0.6% in September, driven mainly by a 3.7% jump in the prices of meat, poultry and fish.

U.S. stocks closed sharply higher on Monday on the back of strong gains in the resources sector and comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and the White House in support of a second economic stimulus package. The Dow Jones industrial average soared 4.7% to 9,265, the S&P 500 jumped 4.8% to 985, and the tech-dominated Nasdaq composite index climbed 3.4% to 1,770.

Crude oil rose for a third day Tuesday on growing expectation that OPEC will announce production cuts to shore up falling oil prices. At 00:25 a.m. ET, oil was quoted at $74.74 a barrel, up $0.49. On Monday, New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in November, rose by $2.40 to close at $74.25 dollars a barrel.

Top stock Telecom fell 2.4%, while Contact Energy jumped 3.4% and Fletcher Building rose 3.9%.

Other major gainers included Auckland International Airport 1.1%, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare 3.8%, Fisher & Paykel Appliances 1.5%, Sky TV 1.8%, Sky City 2.4%, Mainfreight 6.0%, Port of Tauranga 3.9%, The Warehouse Group 4.7%, and Sanford 2.4%.

Losers were Cavalier 0.4%, Pike River Coal 0.7%, Vector 0.5%, PGG Wrightson 4.4%, and Lion Nathan 0.8%.

Dual-listed stocks finished in positive territory, with ANZ surging 7.7%, Westpac gaining 3.2%, and AMP jumping 4.4%.

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Posted in Categories: Economy, New Zealand, Releases, USA.

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