NZ stocks: Sharemarket in step with lower offshore markets

12.00pm

The New Zealand sharemarket was in negative territory this morning after offshore markets lost ground.

By mid-morning the NZSE-40 capital index was down 5.00 points, or 0.24 per cent, at 2075.05, with turnover of 11.61 million stocks valued at $42.31 million.

Australian telco Telstra, down 1c at 642, led turnover with 2.69 million stocks valued at $17.37 million.

Richard Burton of Forsyth Barr Frater Williams said several larger stocks were down on the back of the lower Dow Jones in the United States.

In Britain the benchmark FTSE-100 closed down 20.4 points or 0.39 per cent at 5251.4.

Contact Energy was down 3c at 386, Carter Holt Harvey lost 2c to 193, and Fisher & Paykel Appliances lost 5c to 930. Guinness Peat Group went ex-dividend by 4c, to 187.

Safe stocks such as the ports were also down, while investors went shopping among the retail stocks, boosting some of them to fresh highs. Ports of Auckland was down 4c at 655 and Northland Port lost 5c to 270, while The Warehouse was up 5c at a high of 740, Pacific Retail gained 8c to 213, Hallenstein Glassons was up 4c at 294, and Briscoe Group rose 8c to a high of 210.

Market heavyweight Telecom was down 1c at 487, while Fletcher Forests ordinary shares were unchanged at 27c today, after almost two weeks of gains.

Fletcher Forests was the last bidder left after a lengthy tender process conducted by Central North Island Forest Partnership (CNIFP) receiver Michael Stiassny, of Ferrier Hodgson.

Details of the deal to buy the CNIFP assets were sketchy, but Fletcher lacked the cash to buy the 190,000ha forestry package on its own, and has already said it is involved with a third party in putting together a bid.

Fletcher Building was up 1c at 285.

Small stock Designer Textiles was up 8c at 75 at after announcing a buy-back of 5 per cent of the company at 100 per share. "That looks good, it looks like the sort of company that could earn $5 million or $6 million in five or six years' time," Mr Burton said.

"At 100 per share the market capitalisation is only $35 million so it's still small -- it used to be 220/250 four or five years ago, so it's got a lot of capacity now it's got good management again."

Auckland International Airport was down 5c at 432 after a fine run recently as profit-takers moved in. The airport company is beginning to replace a major section of its main runway this week as part of a five year improvement programme.

There were 30 falls and 28 rises on the 103 stocks traded.

On Wall Street, the Nasdaq composite shed 58.22 points, or 3.13 per cent, to 1804.40; the Dow Jones industrial average fell 48.99 points, or 0.47 per cent, to 10,313.71; and the broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index declined 9.78 points, or 0.85 per cent, to 1136.76.

- NZPA