NZ sharemarket nudges up early

The New Zealand sharemarket nudged up in early trading, as Restaurant Brands received a boost with news of continued strong trading in its KFC brand.

The company reported a 4.2 per cent rise in first quarter sales, with KFC up 8.5 per cent, although sales at the Starbucks Coffee and Pizza Hut brands were down.

Shortly after the market opened today Restaurant Brands shares were up 5c to $2.30.

Around 10.15am the benchmark NZX-50 index was up 4.78 points to 3066, following on from a 13.5-point gain yesterday.

Other shares up early included Steel & Tube, up 7c to $2.40 but on low volume, The Warehouse up 4c to $3.54, Contact Energy up 3c to $5.90, Trustpower up 2c to $7.12, and Freightways up 2c to $3.02.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was down 2c to $3.22, while dual-listed bank Westpac fell 40c to $28.50, and ANZ fell 29c to $27.71.

Among the market heavyweights, Telecom shares were unchanged early on $1.90, having closed up 4c yesterday after falling to a record low last week. Fletcher Building, which gained 14c yesterday, rose a further 1c early today to $8.27.

Markets in Britain and the United States were closed for holidays, while European stock exchanges closed generally weaker in sluggish trade following a debt rating downgrade for Spain, and Japanese shares closed flat after a mixed session weighed down by eurozone worries.

- NZPA