New Zealand Stocks Trade Slightly Higher

The NZX 50 rose 17 points, or 0.1%, to 13,700 in Wednesday morning trade, after retreating in the previous session and moving away from its lowest level since September 16, which it touched a day earlier. The index was mainly buoyed by consumer discretionary, consumer staples, and materials. However, declines in energy and real estate capped the gain. Traders were cautious ahead of New Zealand's business confidence for September and China's PMI data later today for clues about the performance of the private sector in New Zealand's top trading partner. Traders also continued to assess the Pre-election Economic and Fiscal Update ahead of the general election, which will be held on November 7. In the US, Wall Street closed in the red due to a surge in US Treasury yields. Among the early gainers were Delegat Group (3.8%), A2 Milk (1.6%), Sanford (1.5%), Port of Tauranga (1.5%), Chorus (1.1%), Ventia Services Group (0.9%), Fletcher Building (0.6%), and ANZ Group (0.3%).