NZ stocks: Sharemarket climbs off year low

12.00pm

The sharemarket climbed off the floor today after Wall Street broke a seven-day losing streak overnight.

The benchmark NZSE-40 Capital Index, which yesterday slumped to its lowest level since December, was up 16.71 points at 2049.52 by 11am. On-market volume was extremely thin although pre-market crossings boosted turnover to $23.16 million.

ASB Securities broker Stephen Wright said investors had taken some heart from the recovery on Wall Street and the solid half year profit result yesterday of No. 2 stock Carter Holt Harvey.

US stocks rose modestly, snapping the longest blue-chip losing streak since last September, but chronic jitters about corporate earnings cut into a morning rally.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 69.37 points at 8542.48, while the Nasdaq was up 21.99 to 1397.25. But the US market is still hovering near 5-year lows.

The market here was led up by Telecom, which gained 7c to 495, recouping some of yesterday's 11c loss.

Carter Holt Harvey was up 2c to 196 after its well received second quarter result yesterday. The company is expected to better than double the half year net profit of $73 million for the full year.

Baycorp Advantage continued its recovery, rising another 10c today to 460 to go with yesterday's 17c gain against the trend.

The debt collector announced this week it had won a three-year contract for Australia's biggest telco, Telstra.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, which has taken a similar beating to Baycorp this year, also gained today, up 21c to 840. Baycorp topped the turnover charts by value, with shares worth $5.1 million changing hands.

Others to gain were Mainfreight, 7c to 135, Ports of Auckland 11c to 651, and The Warehouse, 10c to 737.

Software of Excellence, which yesterday said it expected to have an interim loss but still report a full year profit of $3 million, was up 4c to 219.

UnitedNetworks fell 5c to 900, and Axa fell 5c to 286.

Rises outnumbered falls by 36 to 13 among the 96 stocks traded so far.

- NZPA