New Zealand’s Benchmark Stock Index Closes at Fresh Record High
New Zealand Stocks Jump to Record in Cyber Attack-Marred Week
(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand shares rose to an all-time high even as cyber attacks rattled the nation’s stock exchange this week and spurred trading halts over the last four days.
The S&P/NZX 50 Gross Index climbed 0.3% to close at 12,093.52, breaking through its February peak. The gauge joins the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite in reclaiming records as global equities continue to recover from March lows.
The NZ$204 billion ($135 billion) stock market has been the target of distributed-denial-of-service attacks that have overwhelmed its website and forced trading halts since Tuesday. The disruptions have been frustrating to investors who were unable to trade amid a busy company earnings season.
The country’s track record in handling the virus has supported its stock gauge in recent months. The index became the first major Asia-Pacific benchmark to erase its 2020 losses in June when the nation was one of the only locations globally to see zero active virus cases.
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