Market Commentary

August was reporting season for many listed companies across New Zealand and Australia. Overall, results were in line with expectations and outlook statements were slightly soft. Against this backdrop, the Australian market rose 1.4% and the New Zealand market rose a remarkable 4.4%. Based on that return (the best performance in a reporting season for 18 years), anyone would think the NZ reporting season must have been sensational. It was neither great nor poor, just ok.

The US led trade wars continued to wreak havoc with the Turkish currency dropping to a record low after the US doubled tariffs on Turkish steel and aluminum. Global markets bounced into the end of the month following agreement between Mexico and the US around a bilateral trade agreement. The US (+3.3%) and Japanese (+1.4%) markets were positive, and the UK (-1.6%), German (-1.5%), and Emerging (-0.5%) markets were down. Global bond yields fell and the US$ rose against most currencies.