NZ Shares: Local market ahead early

The New Zealand sharemarket opened firmer today following an overnight rally on Wall Street.

The benchmark NZX-50 index, which gained 1.1 per cent yesterday, was up 15.80 points, or 0.57 per cent, to 2786.46 in the first five minutes of trading.

The market opened before March quarter gross domestic product figures are released, following on from four consecutive quarters of economic contraction.

Telecom, which climbed 9c yesterday, rose 1c to $2.68.

Fletcher Building gained 11c to $6.50 and Contact Energy rose 5c to $5.75.

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United States share prices jumped as investors were relieved that Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke weathered a congressional hearing well, Reuters reported.

The Fed chief was grilled for hours by US lawmakers about his role in the Bank of America-Merrill Lynch merger.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 172.54 points, or 2.08 per cent, to close unofficially at 8,472.40, snapping a four-day losing streak. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index jumped 19.33 points, or 2.15 per cent, to end unofficially at 920.26. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 37.20 points, or 2.08 per cent, to close unofficially at 1,829.54.

- NZPA