NZ stocks: Contact falls after bid lapse pulls market down

12.00 pm

Contact Energy's shares fell 6c to 372 after Edison Mission's takeover bid failed, pulling the overall sharemarket slightly down in morning trading today.

Trading was very quiet and there were very few other highlights.

The NZSE-40 capital index was down 2.09 points to 2133.13 at 11.35 am.

Telecom propped the market up with a 2c gain to 554. It traded as high as 555, its highest level since last July. It made up half of the $26 million of the value of all the shares traded.

Telecom's Australian unit Telecom Corporation of New Zealand Australia (TCNZA) is understood to be short-listed for another big contract in Australia, this time with insurance company NRMA Insurance, recently renamed IAG Ltd.

Insurance, recently renamed IAG Ltd.

UnitedNetworks rose 10c to 830 after producing a strong year profit on Friday.

Briscoe fell 2c to 174. ABN Amro said it was cutting its rating on Briscoe to "hold" from "buy". Briscoe's $1 shares have soared since it listed at $1.40 in December.

BIL International (formerly Brierley Investments), which had a very strong run last week, eased back 2c to 40c.

Wellington Drive rose 4c to 44c on turnover of 20,000 shares.

Other moves included Fletcher Building, up 3c to 299, Westpac NZ, down 5c to 1770, Carter Holt Harvey, down 2c to 191, Independent Newspapers, down 5c to 390, and The Warehouse, down 3c at 669.

Air NZ was unchanged at 31c after comments at the weekend from Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon, claiming he did not think Air New Zealand would survive.

There were 35 rises and 32 falls among the 116 stocks listed.

- NZPA