Sharemarket has another late surge into positive territory

After trading flat for most of the day, the S&P/NZX 50 Index rose sharply in the last half-hour matching session and closed at 11,917.82, up 33.72 points or 0.28% – after reaching an intraday low of 11,845.01.

There were 58 gainers and 75 decliners over the whole market and volumes picked up with 51.09 million shares worth $161.9m changing hands.

The market is looking ahead to the release of the March quarterly consumer price (CPI) index, with annual inflation expected to be near its peak.

Matt Goodson, managing director of Salt Funds Management, said the CPI is very important, especially the mix between tradeable (imported goods) and non-tradeable (domestic), and the numbers could be market-moving.