Stocks gain on milk price, US rally

Midday Update

ING Property Trust and Nuplex Industries rose, helping the NZX 50 Index to its second daily gain of more than 1  percent, after strong manufacturing data in the US helped stoke a global rally in equities.

Prices jumped in Fonterra's latest online auction, adding to the positive sentiment.

The NZX 50 climbed 32.233, or 1.1 percent, to 3108.68 as at midday, heading for its second daily advance.

Equities on Wall Street and across Europe rallied after US Institute for Supply Management's factory index rose to a three-month high of 56.3 and manufacturing data in China beat expectations.

ING, which is to change its name to Argosy from October 1, gained 2.9 percent to 70 cents. Nuplex Industries, the specialty chemicals maker gained 2.6 percent to $3.22.

Pike River Coal rose 2.9 percent to $1.08.

Pyne Gould was unchanged at 42 cents fate after the financial services company confirmed that a $100 million loan to South Canterbury Finance has been repaid following the finance company's collapse into receivership.

PGC is a minority holder in Torchlight Fund No. 1, one of the parties that advanced the loan to SCF, through its Torchlight Investment Group subsidiary. Another subsidiary manages the fund.

The loan was repaid from a $175 million loan the government extended to Trustee Executors to settle prior claims on SCF, whose receivership has triggered a $1.6 billion call on the government's retail guarantee.

Affco, New Zealand's fourth-largest meat processor and exporter, was unchanged at 36 cents after Talley's Group announced that would extend the deadline on its buyout offer to minority shareholders until October 8.

The Nelson-based conglomerate, which owns 78 percent of the Affco shares, said it will not revise its 37 cents a share offer, even if it does extend the deadline further.

The New Zealand dollar climbed back over 71 US cents and was recently traded at 71.03 US cents on the back of the better-than-expected prices at Fonterra's online milk auction, and upbeat global sentiment which took a boost from American manufacturing data.

The price of whole milk powder jumped 19 percent to US$3,522 a tonne in Fonterra Cooperative Group's online auction as the Russian drought raises concerns about buyers' ability to secure milk in the future.

Rising grain prices from the drought in Russia stoked demand for Fonterra's products, as buyers get nervous about the rising cost of feed and how it might weigh on their ability to secure future supply.

The Commerce Commission said today it has filed proceedings in the High Court in Auckland against a number of multi-national freight forwarding companies alleging price collusion.

The charges relate to alleged agreements around the implementation of surcharges and fees on air freight forwarding services to and from New Zealand in order to control prices in the market, the Commission said in a statement today.

The companies implicated form part of the Deutsche Bahn Group, which operates under the DB Schenker brand, and include BAX Group, Kuehne + Nagel International AG, Panalpina World Transport Holdings, EGL, and Geologistics International.

- BusinessDesk