FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

New Zealand Home Sales Slow, Prices Fall in August

By
New Zealand Home Sales Slow, Prices Fall in August

New Zealand's house prices and sales fell in August, with houses taking longer to sell, making it the sixth-lowest August in 35 years of records, according to the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand.

The national median sale price fell 1.3% year over year in August to NZ$750,000 as the sales count declined 13% to 5,430, while inventory levels jumped 9.7% to 32,908 units, with Auckland and Wellington now having seen 31 straight months of year-on-year inventory growth.

Also, new listings fell 5.1% to 8,326, and properties took 51 days to sell, up 3 days from a year ago.

Despite the broad decline, five out of 16 regions recorded positive year-on-year median price movements, with Southland and Tasman being the strongest performers, rising 7.4% and 5.6% in median prices respectively.

REINZ noted that fixed mortgage rates moving higher, an unchanged official cash rate, along with household costs, job security, and global uncertainty were the key influences in the August housing market.

"Our members tell us they generally expect conditions to remain broadly steady over the coming months, with improving enquiry levels in some areas supporting cautious optimism," said REINZ Chief Executive Lizzy Ryley.

ANZ said that the August data is consistent with its estimate that the housing market will remain soft over the coming months, and prices will end the year slightly lower than the start.

What else is happening in US Markets?

JD.com Unit Dada Nexus to Pay SEC $500,000 Over 'Sham' Ad Transactions
US Markets

JD.com Unit Dada Nexus to Pay SEC $500,000 Over 'Sham' Ad Transactions

A unit of JD.com (HKG:9618) has agreed to pay $500,000 to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges that it engaged in "sham transactions" to inflate revenue, according to a cease-and-desist order issued Friday.Dada Nexus, the on-demand delivery platform behind JD Daojia and Dada Now, consented to the order without admitting or denying the SEC's findings, the commission said.The JD.com unit has to pay the penalty within 10 business days.The SEC found that from October 2022 through September 2023, employees in Dada's advertising and marketing unit entered into sales and purchase contracts with customers and vendors in equal amounts."At least some of the relevant customers and vendors had undisclosed connections and earned commissions related to the relevant contracts, and no services were provided under the relevant contracts," the SEC said.The commission noted that Dada's net revenues were overstated by 8.24% in the second quarter of 2023 and 9.34% in the third quarter of 2023. Operations and support costs were also inflated by 14.24% and 14.32% in those two quarters, respectively.From October 2022 to September 2023, net revenues were inflated by about 568 million yuan and costs by roughly 576 million yuan, the order said.Without the transactions, Dada's revenue would have missed its guidance by about 7% in the second quarter of 2023 and 6% in the third quarter of that year.Dada discovered the scheme during a routine internal audit in November 2023 and conducted an independent review. After disclosing the findings in January 2024, Dada's ADSs plummeted 43%.Dada Nexus did not immediately respond to' request for comment.

HKG:9618
Update: Wall Street Rises at End of Losing Week Amid Inflation Worries
US Markets

Update: Wall Street Rises at End of Losing Week Amid Inflation Worries

(Updates with market moves at the end of the day, and other changes, if any.)US stocks rose Friday after a four-day slump to trim weekly losses, even as expectations grew that the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates as soon as next week amid mounting inflation concerns.The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1% each to close at 52,573.29 and 26,333.04, respectively. The S&P 500 climbed 0.9% to 7,656.98. Barring utilities and healthcare, all sectors ended in the green, led by communication services.The holiday-shortened trading week saw the Dow shedding 1.6%. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq logged weekly losses of 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively.In economic news, US consumer inflation hit a three-month high in August as energy prices rose, while the core measure unexpectedly accelerated, official data showed."With oil prices up significantly in recent weeks, again hovering around $100 per barrel and underlying price pressures in services remaining sticky, a (Fed) rate hike at next week's meeting now appears all but certain," TD Economics said in a note.The probability of the US central bank increasing its benchmark lending rate by 25 basis points next week jumped to 87% Friday from 72% Thursday, according to the CME FedWatch tool. The odds pointing to another Fed pause fell to 13% from 28%.US consumer sentiment weakened in September, while inflation expectations rose, with the year-ahead price growth outlook reaching the highest reading since June, preliminary results of a University of Michigan survey showed.West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down 2% at $100.44 a barrel in Friday late-afternoon trade, while Brent dropped 2.6% to $104.80. However, both benchmarks were on track for their second consecutive weekly advances as tensions in the Middle East intensified earlier in the week.Saudi Arabia's Energy Ministry said Friday that the kingdom shut down its key East-West crude oil pipeline in the Riyadh and Madinah regions as a precautionary measure a day after the facility was targeted in multiple attacks. Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis reportedly launched strikes on Saudi energy infrastructure in recent days.A six-member bloc of Gulf states is considering talks with Iran next week over the future of the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important chokepoint for crude flows, news outlets reported Friday.The International Energy Agency on Friday projected a steeper contraction in oil demand this year as the Middle East conflict is expected to hamper production and push energy prices higher.Diesel prices in the US surged past $6 per gallon for the first time ever Friday amid concerns over energy supply disruptions that in turn could fuel inflation.Treasury yields were higher, with the two-year rate up 7.5 basis points at 4.63% and the 10-year rate rising 2.7 basis points to 4.97%.In company news, Dell Technologies (DELL) shares jumped 12%, the second-biggest gain on the S&P 500, as RBC Capital Markets initiated its coverage of the computer maker's stock with an outperform rating and a $640 price target.Dell is well positioned to benefit from the multiyear artificial intelligence infrastructure spending cycle, RBC said in a note.ACV Auctions (ACVA) shares surged 44%, while Copart (CPRT) fell 2.6%. Late Thursday, the companies said Copart will acquire ACV Auctions for $10.50 per share in cash, representing an implied equity value of roughly $1.9 billion.Spot gold edged up 0.7% to $4,348.43 per troy ounce, while silver was little changed at $64.94 per ounce.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$ACVA$CPRT$DELL
IEA Cuts Oil Demand Outlook as US-Iran Deadlock Seen Impacting Production
US Markets

IEA Cuts Oil Demand Outlook as US-Iran Deadlock Seen Impacting Production

The International Energy Agency on Friday projected a steeper contraction in oil demand this year as the Middle East conflict is expected to hamper production and push energy prices higher.The agency expects oil consumption to decline by 2.5 million barrels a day in 2026, about 940,000 barrels more than its prior estimate.The ongoing deadlock in US-Iran negotiations postpones the potential recovery of oil flows into next year, with supply losses centered on middle distillates and petrochemical feedstocks in Asia, according to the IEA."With the protracted US-Iran diplomatic standoff and renewed attacks in both the Gulf and the Red Sea's Bab el-Mandeb choke point continuing to hamper the normalization of oil flows, we have further cut our supply and demand projections for the remainder of the year," the IEA said.Tensions recently flared up between Washington and Tehran, sparking fears of prolonged supply disruptions and sending oil prices over $100 a barrel this week. Brent and West Texas Intermediate were falling on Friday, but are up more than 15% each in September so far following two back-to-back monthly gains.Prices for diesel and gasoil, which make up nearly 30% of global demand, surpassed $200 per barrel in the US in early September, 94% above pre-war levels, according to the IEA report.Diesel prices in the US surged past $6 per gallon for the first time ever on Friday amid concerns over energy supply disruptions, according to AAA motor club data."The rise in both crude futures and physical prices pales in comparison with those for refined products, where market tightness is now most acute," the IEA wrote.The agency expects global oil demand to rise by 2.6 million barrels per day in 2027.Global oil supply is projected to decline by 5.7 million barrels a day to 100.7 million barrels in 2026. The IEA previously expected supply to fall by 4.3 million barrels a day.Total oil production slid in August as more than 10 million barrels a day of Gulf output remained shut in amid heightened security risks, the IEA said Friday. Oil inventories across the world have depleted by 507 million barrels since the Iran war began at the end of February.A full recovery in supplies from Middle Eastern producers will be deferred until 2027, according to the IEA report.The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries lowered global oil demand projections for 2026 on Thursday amid high energy prices.