Daily Dispatch: Global markets steady after Trump rules out military move on Greenland

Thursday, 22 January 2026

People walk along the promenade in front of the Congress Centre where the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum takes place in Davos, Switzerland.

Market Summary

In mid-afternoon trade, US markets recovered from earlier losses, making up lost ground after US President Donald Trump told attendees at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos that he ruled out military action to take Greenland.

The comment appeared to ease concern that in recent weeks has rattled markets and sent the prices of precious metals to new record highs as investors have recently flocked to safe haven assets.

The Dow Jones rose 0.5% during trade on Wednesday, the S&P500 gained 0.3% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 0.1%.

In Europe markets lose ground in their latest trading session. The Stoxx 600 declined 0.2%, extending its decline to a fourth consecutive session.

Asian markets were mixed, with signs of a 'sell America' sentiment adding to volatility across the region.

In South Korea, the Kospi moved 0.49% higher, the Kosdaq dropped more than 2.5%, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index moved 0.41% lower.

Back here, and the S&P/NZX50 moved down 0.84% on Wednesday, dragged down by markets that had fallen across the world in response to Trump’s Greenland comments. Most stocks declined and volumes were moderate. Wider impacts on the New Zealand economy of the flight from US assets was examined here.

Elsewhere, the Global Dairy Auction had a second consecutive rise- albeit a much smaller one than January’s event.

The country’s largest stocks fell - Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was down 0.52%, Infratil dropped 1.35% and Mainfreight shed 0.53%. Meridian and Mercury released market updates - Meridian said the year had begun “in a very strong position when it comes to hydro storage. A wet spring and early summer have been good for the company and broader electricity market.”

Mercury said in its quarterly update forward prices for Auckland power had eased considerably to $135 per MWh.

Key decliners on the main board included WasteCo, down 7.14% on continued large volumes of trade. Trade Window Holdings dropped 6.25%, Metroglass fell 5.88%, New Zealand King Salmon declined 4.55% and Savor Group fell 4.35% as the company declared it had appointed BDO New Zealand as its external auditor.

Gains were small. TruScreen rose 5.88%, Third Age Health was up 4.16%, Manuka Resources advanced 3.76%, Gentrack and Rua Bioscience ticked up 2.75% and 2.63% respectively.

In Sydney the S&P/ASX 200 closed down 0.37% on Wednesday. The biggest decliners included drone tech firm Droneshield, which lost 8.86%, and radiopharmaceutical firm Telix Pharmaceuticals, which dropped 7.66% despite the company meeting its latest revenue target. Analysts flagged increased volatility ahead of the February reporting season.

While we slept

Berkshire Hathaway is preparing to exit its 28% stake in Kraft Heinz as new CEO Greg Abel aims to move on from a rare Buffett gaffe. The move shows Abel’s willingness to move on from the deal that has long stood out as a rare blemish on Buffett’s otherwise solid record. Shares of Kraft Heinz fell as much as 7.5% at one point in Wednesday trading following the news.

Trump told business and political leaders at the World Economic Forum that some areas of Europe were no longer recognisable. He said: “I love Europe and I want to see Europe go good, but it’s not heading in the right direction.” Trump’s speech came after global leaders condemned his aggressive approach to seeking to annex Greenland. Many leaders raised the alarm about his Greenland position at the event. During this speech, Trump ruled out military force to take Greenland, something he’d previously refused to do when asked.

What’s up today

In today’s The Post, Tom Pullar-Strecker reports the infant formula industry is hopeful of an NZ standard after giving minister a kick-along, Miriam Bell reports there are concerns about New Zealand’s progress on cutting emissions, and the dairy auction ticks up a second time, but it’s a weaker increase.

Stats NZ’s international visitors and international migration figures, along with electronic card transactions data for December, will be released today.