One definition of a bull market (there are others) is that it has moved by 15 - 20% over an extended period and the more than 40% rise in the last 2 more than covers the meaning of a bull market for me. The NZX 50 Gross Index reached a low point of 2418 on 3 March 2009 and since that point has risen 1074 points to close at 3492 on April 21 2011. A rise of 44.5% in just over 2 years. I prefer to look at it as more of a realistic valuation of the companies listed on the NZX and anything north of current levels risks going over real valuations. One way of looking at this is that the market as a whole has come off an incredible low after the October 2008 financial crises and that it is still far from the high of 4333 reached in May 2007 but 2007 was a heady time for boutiques markets the world over and they were set for a correction from these levels as P/E multiples and other crucial financial data were fast separating from any semblance of real value on the stock market.
Well run and grows every year the only "holding it back" is the value of the kiwi / US. You can see in the 10 year chart above that this has not been a stock to buy for capital appreciation, reaching a high of over $2.75 nearly 10 years ago and never reaching even close to that ever since but it is well off its 2009 lows of just under 60c, so you would be buying at close to 3 year highs. They may even be a good short soon! Treasuries. And, importantly, the Fed said it plans to keep interest rates low even after a recovery gains momentum. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted recently that Fed policy could soon be tied directly to the U.S. The Federal Reserve on Thursday, in an effort to target stubbornly high unemployment, offered an array of open-ended stimulus programs designed to keep interest rates low until an economic recovery gains significant traction.
