New Zealand's NZX 50 slipped 56 points, or 0.4%, to 13,702 in Thursday morning trade, retreating from a record high hit the day before as investors booked profits. Wall Street also extended its losses on Wednesday, falling from recent peaks amid ongoing geopolitical tensions, mixed economic data, and early earnings reports. Furthermore, caution grew ahead of the December food inflation and PMI figures on Friday in the island nation, followed by the Q4 CPI next week, after Q3 marked the strongest rise in five quarters. Still, losses were cushioned by a record 2025 trade surplus from top trading partner China, with December figures staying above USD 100 billion, driven by solid exports to non-U.S. markets in response to Trump tariffs. Weakness stemmed from producer manufacturing, transport, and logistics, though industrial services and energy minerals limited declines. Notable laggards included Winton Land (-1.7%), Vista Group Intl. (-1.7%), Serko Ltd. (-1.2%), and Infratil Ltd. (-1.0%).