KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand sharemarket closed slightly lower today, which was disappointing given Wall Street rallied late in its session.
The NZSX-50 index closed down 8.313 points, or 0.306 per cent, at 2706.275, reversing gains posted at the open.
The New Zealand market was not alone in its struggle as the Australian market was lower today and Asian markets did not fire.
"Our fall is just a reflection of the lack of follow through and the continuing negative sentiment for equities in our part of the world," said Barry Lindsay, research manager at First NZ Capital.
Volume was worth $70.85 million, which was unspectacular. There were 22 rises and 47 falls.
"Most investors have pretty much just moved to the side lines," he said.
Air NZ fell 2c to 89 even though the company said it would save $20 million by cutting 200 jobs.
Telecom was up 1c to 235, while Fletcher Building eased 2c to 570.
The Warehouse was unchanged at 369 after earlier being up 6c.
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare eased 4c to 312 and Sanford eased 12c to 538.
Nuplex rose 4c to 495. AMP eased 5c to 605 and Tourism Holdings eased 3c to 75.
Rakon eased 2c to 102 and Mainfreight eased 28c to 445. NZX rose 5c to 595 and NZOG rose 2c to 120. SkyCity eased 2c to 305.
US stocks staged a late fightback on Tuesday after stronger-than-expected results and outlook from computer maker Hewlett-Packard offset fears that more losses at Citigroup and other banks are yet to come.
Citigroup's shares fell 6 per cent, hitting a 13-year low, on concern that its plan to slash 52,000 jobs might not be enough to return the second-largest US bank to health.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 151.17 points, or 1.83 per cent, to 8424.75. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 8.37 points, or 0.98 per cent, to 859.12. And the Nasdaq Composite Index added just 1.22 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 1483.27.
HP's stock shot up 14.5 per cent.
- NZPA
