New Zealand shares finished higher on Tuesday as most markets saw gains after a higher Wall Street close, following a Nikkei rally helped by Sanae Takaichi's decisive election win in Japan.

The S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.5% or 67.3 points to close at 13,513.68.

In domestic news, the New Zealand Light Traffic index eased 1.1% in January, but was up 3.6% from the same period a year earlier, according to data from ANZ Research.

Further, New Zealand's total new lending increased to NZ$20.1 billion in December 2025 from NZ$12.79 billion in November 2025, according to data from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.

Also, ANZ Research raised its farmgate milk price forecast on Tuesday to NZ$9.50 per kilogram of milk solids for the 2025 to 2026 season, citing a rebound in dairy prices this year after last year's drop.

In corporate news, Westpac Banking (NZE:WBC, ASX:WBC) said that Chief Information Officer Scott Collary will retire later this year.

Bremworth (NZE:BRW) said it now expects to pay between NZ$0.20 and NZ$0.30 per share to its shareholders in relation with its acquisition by Floorscape, a unit of New York Stock Exchange-listed Mohawk Industries, via a scheme of arrangement.