Market echoes US falls

By DITA DE BONI

The New Zealand sharemarket started 2001 by shedding most of the gains it made on the last trading day of 2000.

But traders - many of whom were glued to the cricket when the Business Herald called yesterday - said the quiet market would continue to reflect few ripples until business swung back into action next week.

On closing last night, the NZSE40 was down 26.46 points - around 1.4 per cent. Of stocks traded, 43 rose in price and 51 fell.



That followed a slump in New York, prompted by the key gauge of United States manufacturing activity showing December's level to be the lowest in 10 years.

A Wall St Journal survey of leading economists also predicted that growth in the first half of this year would slow to 2 per cent from 5.2 per cent last year.

After sliding 39 per cent in 2000, the Nasdaq started 2001 by dropping 7.2 per cent, its seventh biggest loss in a 29-year history.

That caused Capstone shares to fall from $US28 to $US23.75, which in turn sent Fletcher Energy shares down 39c to close at $8.16.

In contrast, widely expected news that Fletcher Forests' Central North forestry partnership was "almost certainly' in breach of banking covenants at the end of December did not harm its share price. Forests shares closed unchanged at 28c.

Telecom also dropped yesterday - down 24c to a new low of $4.57 - thought to be a reaction to Australian reports that Vodafone is a preferred bidder for Cable & Wireless Optus' mobile phone network, and that NTT DoCoMo, the company Telecom was to partner in the deal, may go it alone.