This collaboration between NZSA and University of Canterbury (UC) Business School is part of our mission to promote a thriving market and to be the voice of investors. A sentiment index will contribute to the understanding of investor behaviour and the overall market and allow you to get first access to the data and make better-informed investment decisions.
Have your say!
Each week, a random selection of NZSA members are sent an email to complete the survey. If you wish to participate in the NZ Investor Sentiment Index Survey anyway, you can click on this link anytime – also contained in each Briefing newsletter. The sentiment survey is conducted weekly from Thursday 12:01am to Wednesday 11:45pm.
This Week’s Results:
This week’s commentary – June 4th, 2026
New Zealand stock market sentiment
Bullish sentiment decreased, while neutral sentiment and bearish sentiment increased, leaving neutral responses as the largest group.
- Bullish sentiment, expectations that stock prices will rise over the next six months, decreased by 35.7 percentage points to 14.3%.
- Neutral sentiment, expectations that stock prices will essentially stay unchanged over the next six months, increased by 23.8 percentage points to 57.1%.
- Bearish sentiment, expectations that stock prices will fall over the next six months, increased by 11.9 percentage points to 28.6%.
New Zealand sector level sentiment
At the sector level, bullish sentiment increased in three of eight sectors, decreased in three of eight sectors, and was unchanged in two of eight sectors. Neutral sentiment increased in five of eight sectors and decreased in three of eight sectors. Bearish sentiment increased in three of eight sectors and decreased in five of eight sectors.
- The level of optimism among individual investors is highest for IT (71.4%), followed by energy (57.1%) and primary sector and financials (both at 28.6%). The level of optimism is lowest for consumer discretionary and real estate (both at 0.0%), followed by industrials and health care (both at 14.3%) and primary sector and financials (both at 28.6%).
- The level of neutral sentiment is highest for health care (71.4%), followed by real estate (57.1%) and primary sector and financials (both at 42.9%). Neutral sentiment is lowest for IT (0.0%), followed by energy, industrials, and consumer discretionary (all at 28.6%) and primary sector and financials (both at 42.9%).
- The level of pessimism is highest for consumer discretionary (71.4%), followed by industrials (57.1%) and real estate (42.9%). Pessimism is lowest for energy and health care (both at 14.3%), followed by primary sector, financials, and IT (all at 28.6%) and real estate (42.9%).
International sentiment
For Australian stocks, bullish sentiment decreased, while neutral sentiment and bearish sentiment increased. For U.S. stocks, bullish sentiment decreased, while neutral sentiment and bearish sentiment increased. The two markets moved in the same direction across the three sentiment categories.
- Bullish sentiment, expectations that stock prices will rise over the next six months, decreased by 38.1 percentage points to 28.6% for Australian stocks and decreased by 40.5 percentage points to 42.9% for U.S. stocks.
- Neutral sentiment, expectations that stock prices will stay flat over the next six months, increased by 9.5 percentage points to 42.9% for Australian stocks and increased by 26.2 percentage points to 42.9% for U.S. stocks.
- Bearish sentiment, expectations that stock prices will fall over the next six months, increased by 28.6 percentage points to 28.6% for Australian stocks and increased by 14.3 percentage points to 14.3% for U.S. stocks.
New Zealand personal investment sentiment
If investors were to purchase equity, the proportions of investors planning to increase their investment in large cap shares and anticipating no change in their equity allocation increased compared to last week. Conversely, the proportion of investors planning to increase their investment in small cap shares and funds decreased compared to last week. Meanwhile, the proportion of investors expressing uncertainty about their equity allocation remained the same.
- The proportion of investors anticipating an increase in their small cap shares decreased by 19.0 percentage points to 14.3% this week if they were to purchase equity.
- The proportion of investors anticipating an increase in their large cap shares increased by 28.6 percentage points to 28.6% this week if they were to purchase equity.
- The proportion of investors anticipating an increase in their funds decreased by 21.4 percentage points to 28.6% this week if they were to purchase equity.
- The proportion of investors anticipating no change in their equity allocation increased by 11.9 percentage points to 28.6% this week if they were to purchase equity.
- The proportion of investors who express uncertainty about their equity allocation was unchanged at 0.0% this week if they were to purchase equity.
Historic Data
There have been wide variations since the survey began (January 2020) in Investor Sentiment. The following chart shows:
- the lowest recorded response for each type of sentiment (the lower ‘whisker’)
- the recorded responses between 25th – 75th percentile (the ‘box’)
- the median response score – ie, exactly 50% of scores are above and below this number
- the maximum response (excluding ‘outliers’)
- Interestingly, NZ Investors have displayed a greater tendency towards expressing “negative” (bearish) sentiment since the survey’s inception.