NZ stocks: Mixed day, ahead of Fletcher Forests news

12.00pm

Market heavyweights were having a mixed day on the sharemarket this morning, while investors waited for an announcement on Fletcher Forests.

Just after 11am the NZSE-40 capital index was down 7.43 points to 2090.90 on a moderate $23.8 million total turnover.

Brokers felt the market was reflecting the lack of confidence in US markets, where the Nasdaq finished overnight barely above its low after the September 11 attacks.

"I think we are in a bear market, particularly for those people who take their lead from the US," said Andrew Kelleher of ASB Securities. "There was mixed news overnight given that Europe was up and US was down, but that was more a timing thing.

"The only positive from it all is the New Zealand market is performing well on a relative basis and it might be a self-fulfilling thing, with more offshore people parking money down here."

Much of the early trading were pre-market crossings in Australian banking stocks.

Telecom dominated trading with $6.7 million worth of shares changing hands. It was down 7c to 506 on what brokers felt was telco volatility.

Fletcher Forests preference and head shares were up a cent, to 23 and 24 respectively, ahead of an announcement by the Stock Exchange's market surveillance panel at 12.30pm. Key Forest shareholder Rubicon was up a cent to 66.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare lost 20c, hitting a new low to 810 after a three per cent fall on its American Depository Receipts overnight.

Macquarie Equities senior analyst Arthur Lim noted this week that Healthcare's share price also seemed to have come under pressure from tax-loss related selling by Australian funds.

Auckland Airport clawed back most of its losses yesterday after the sale of Sydney Airport, shooting up 6c to 440 . Brokers said there were various opinions as to whether the Sydney sale price would have a negative or positive effect on the value of the Auckland facility.

Pacific Retail Group gained 13c to 324 on a media report that Cullen Investment's takeover bid was gaining strength.

Other moves included Tranzrail down 4c to 310, UnitedNetworks down 5c to 850, Sky City up 5c to 640, and INL down 5c to 385.

So far there have been 25 rises and 31 falls on 92 stocks traded.

On Wall St, the technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index fell 36.35 points, or 2.49 per cent, to 1,423.99, leaving the Nasdaq just above the 1,423.19 closing low of September 21.

Fears about Corporate America's profits also sent the Dow Jones industrial average down 155 points, or 1.67 per cent, to 9,126.82, after rallying more than 1 per cent. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost 16.58 points, or 1.67 per cent, to 976.14.

- NZPA