Here are the key things you need to know about in the NZX markets over the past 24 hours. Changes are as at 3:00 pm and may change when the market closes at 4:45 pm.
WHAT THE NZX 50 INDEX IS DOING
The NZX50 gained +0.3% today, lifting the index +0.3% over the past five days, +1.5% for the month, and +1.3% year-on-year.
THE MAIN GAINERS
Among the 39 gainers, all of the day’s top four performers - Vulcan Steel (VSL, #31), a2 Milk (ATM, #8), Investore Property (IPL, #47), and Sky Network (SKT, #48) - rose 2%. Over the past five days, Vulcan Steel was up +8% but remained down -14% over six months and -7% year-on-year. a2 Milk gained +3% in five days, +12% over six months, and +19% for the year. Investore was up +3% in five days but down -6% year-on-year. Sky Network fell -2% over the week but remained +5% ahead for the year.
Vulcan Steel Limited
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THE MAIN DECLINERS
Of the 36 decliners, Vista Group (VGL, #33) fell -2% today, down -10% over the week but up +3% year-on-year. Freightways (FRW, #19) slipped -1% but was +2% higher over five days and +22% year-on-year. Port of Tauranga (POT, #11) dropped -1% but was +5% over six months and +22% for the year. Contact Energy (CEN, #7) eased -1%, down -3% over six months, but up +1% year-on-year.
Vista Group
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SMARTSHARES EFTs
| 1-day | 5-day | 6-month | YTD | 1Y | |
| NZ Top 50 ETF (FNZ) | +0.4% | +0.2% | -3.3% | -1.1% | -1.1% |
| NZ Top 10 ETF (TNZ) | +0.4% | -0.3% | -4.1% | -6.8% | -4.6% |
| S/P NZX50 ETF (NZG) | +0.1% | +0.2% | -2.7% | -2.7% | -1.2% |
| NZ Dividend ETF (DIV) | +0.3% | +0.6% | +1.3% | +3.9% | +3.9% |
KEY ANNOUNCEMENTS
Meridian Energy (MEL, #2) reported that national hydro storage fell from 104% to 87% of the historical average in the month to 11 August 2025. South Island storage dropped to 79% and North Island storage to 119%. July inflows were 89% of average, with Waiau catchment inflows at 60% and Waitaki catchment storage ending the month at 89% of average. Snow storage in the Waitaki catchment was 76% of average in early August, while Waiau catchment water storage ended July at 77% of average. July was the fourth warmest on record, with above-average rainfall in most of the North Island and the top of the South, but below normal in central and southern South Island. National electricity demand fell -0.3% year-on-year. NZAS’s average load was 552MW. Retail sales volumes rose +9.4% on July 2024, led by a 21.7% lift in large business sales, 15.9% in residential, and gains across all other customer segments.
Auckland International Airport (AIA, #3) reported 831,000 international passenger movements in July 2025, down -3% from a year earlier. Excluding transits, the decline was -2%, with seat capacity also down -2% and average load factors easing 0.5 percentage points to 82%. The fall was partly due to earlier school holidays in New Zealand this year. Passenger movements by New Zealand nationals dropped -2% for the month but rose +3% when comparing school holiday weeks. Australian nationals were up +5% due to later school holidays in Victoria and Queensland, while Chinese nationals fell -13% following a spike last year from the World Choir Games. Short-haul international traffic was flat, while long-haul passenger movements fell -7% on 6% fewer seats. Domestic passenger numbers rose +1%, with capacity up +3% but load factors falling to 82%. Queenstown Airport recorded record international passenger numbers of 105,000 in July, up +10% year-on-year, with domestic passengers up +4%.
NZX50 Energy Sector
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