Chinese whiteware manufacturing giant Haier's 20% buy-in to Fisher & Paykel Appliances has led to it being removed from the stock exchange's top 15 companies list, to be replaced by Freightways.
Shares in F&P Appliances yesterday traded flat, around 75c, while Freightways' shares opened at $2.99 to end the day at $3.09, on light volumes.
Craigs Investment Partners broker Peter McIntyre said while F&P Appliances' market capitalisation was $550 million and Freightways at $450 million, the May decision by Haier to take an $80 million 20% stake in Appliances took a fifth of shares out of trading and reduced liquidity - prompting its removal from the Top 15.
Aside from the Haier stake, Appliances had also just shored up its finances with about $210 million of capital raising at the time, designed to pay down mounting debts incurred during the past three years as Appliances moved its manufacturing offshore to low wage economies.
Following the closure of the Mosgiel plant and loss of 430 jobs recently, Appliances last week formally opened its combined design and call centre site in Dunedin which employs 110 staff.
