MT Newswires -ShutterstockNew Zealand shares ended lower on Tuesday as investors braced for a possible intensified US-Iran conflict after the Iran-aligned Houthis said they would impose a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia. The S&P/NZX 50 Index fell 0.29% or 40 points to close at 13,656.03. New Zealand and the Philippines have established a comprehensive partnership, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said on Tuesday, according to a Tuesday Reuters report. In domestic news, New Zealand's annual consumer inflation increased by 4.1% in the June quarter, up from a 3.1% increase in the 12 months to the March quarter, data from Stats NZ showed. In corporate news, Contact Energy (ASX:CEN, NZE:CEN) said retail mass-market electricity and gas sales increased year-on-year in June, alongside a rise in wholesale contracted electricity sales.