KEY POINTS:
The sharemarket rallied in tandem with other equity markets today after an interest rate cut in the United States boosted confidence on Wall St.
However, the NZSX-50 index's 1.4 per cent rise was "a bit disappointing" compared to 3 per cent-plus jumps on other bourses, Forsyth Barr broker David Price said.
"Having said that, we've probably come out with our noses a little cleaner than some of these other markets which do have a big bent towards financials."
While there had been some bargain hunting, he felt most investors were staying on the sidelines until the volatility began to recede.
The NZSX-50 closed up 1.4 per cent or 48.63 points at 3467.26 on moderate turnover worth $118 million.
But this was boosted by pre-market trades in Telecom, which bounced 8c to 392 on $35 million worth of shares.
Fletcher Building, which has suffered of late, jumped 12c to 865, after news that it will close its Laminex factory in Auckland, cutting more than 60 jobs.
A big line of Pumpkin Patch shares was also crossed - 3.6 per cent of the company's shares traded hands sending the stock up 11c to 161.
Big rises were seen in Mainfreight, up 11c to 579, Freightways up 9c to 296, ING Medical Properties up 7c to 120, Hallenstein Glasson up 7c to 346, and Ryman up 13c to 152.
Australian banks also took heart from solid results from two big US banks: AMP rose 50c to 860, ANZ leaped 205 to 2595, and Westpac surged 200 to 2780.
NZ Oil & Gas rose 5c to 126 as its Tui oilfield investment prepares to produce its 10 millionth barrel of oil.
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare rose 8c to 286 after taxpayer-funded medical insurance schemes in the US decided to subsidise sleep breathing devices. Sleep apnoea devices make up half of F&P Healthcare's revenues and the US makes up about 75 per cent of the global market.
Air NZ gained a cent to 142 after this week's dividend payout and a decision to put up some fares due to higher fuel prices.
Among the few decliners were Auckland Airport, down 4c to 239, Sky City down 3c to 367, and Sky TV down a cent to 467.
Elsewhere, Australian stocks were up 3.4 per cent in mid-afternoon trading and Japanese stocks were up nearly 3 per cent.
On Wall St, US stocks rang up their biggest one-day gains in more than five years after the Federal Reserve's deep interest-rate cut and solid results from two top investment banks reassured investors shocked by investment bank Bear Stearns' sudden downfall.
There had been fears about the results of other US banks but Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers both topped forecasts albeit with lower earnings.
The Fed also fulfilled expectations by cutting its benchmark rate to its lowest since February 2005 - 2.25 per cent against New Zealand's 8.25 per cent.
The S&P index and the Nasdaq closed up more than 4 per cent, even though the rate cut was slightly less than some on Wall Street were expecting.
The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 420.41 points, or 3.51 per cent, to end at 12,392.66. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 54.14 points, or 4.24 per cent, to 1330.74. The Nasdaq Composite Index soared 91.25 points, or 4.19 per cent, to 2268.26.
- NZPA
