The NZX 50 dropped 58 points, or 0.4%, to 13,542 in morning trade on Monday, halting gains from the previous session and hitting its lowest level in over a week, mainly weighed down by losses in real estate, utilities, and industrials. Traders continued to monitor the ongoing US government shutdown, as the delay of key economic data will prolong the debate about whether another rate cut is needed at the Fed’s December meeting. However, positive data from China, New Zealand's top trading partner, capped the fall, as consumer prices on the mainland unexpectedly rose in October while producer prices fell the least in 14 months. Domestically, expectations of rate cuts by the RBNZ at this month’s meeting also prevented the index from a steeper decline, with the market expecting a 25 bps reduction. Among the early losers were Freightways (-1.8%), Fisher & Paykel Healthcare (-1.4%), Meridian Energy (-1.2%), Summerset Group (-1.1%), Colonial Motor (-0.8%), and Ebos Group (-0.6%).