Analysts said likely reason for the gap is the high proportion of yield-sensitive stocks in the local market starting to look less attractive. With US 10 year yields hitting 2.15 per cent - their highest point in more than 10 months, the allure of yield-sensitive New Zealand stocks has diminished. In the US, banks and health-care shares surged on bets that a Trump administration would roll back regulatory scrutiny of the industries. Utility and real-estate stocks tumbled as a rout in bonds pushed the 10-year yield higher, dampening demand for the shares' relatively high dividend payouts. "Yields are moving their way higher, that's good for banks," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist and director of research for Wunderlich Securities in Boston told Bloomberg.

Source: New Zealand Herald November 10, 2016 23:26 UTC