KEY POINTS:
The sharemarket was slightly down today as the Government announced it had accepted a plan to separate the operations of the market's largest company, Telecom.
Telecom was down 1c early to 382, having risen 5c on Friday.
Communications Minister David Cunliffe dubbed today "separation day", with Telecom splitting into wholesale, retail and network divisions.
The benchmark NZSX-50 index was down 2.16 points to 3445.34 around 10.10am. On Friday, it had gained nearly 43 points as it bucked a negative regional trend.
Today's flat start came after United States stocks fell early Saturday (NZT) as a profit warning from JC Penney raised concerns about slowing consumer spending while persistent worries about credit-related problems throttled financial stocks.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 86.06 points, or 0.70 per cent, to end at 12,216.40.
Among New Zealand stocks to fall early today were Contact Energy, 2c to 796, Fletcher Building 5c to 830, Infratil 4c to 213, and The Warehouse 5c to 580.
Stocks to rise early included Auckland International Airport, 2c to 218, Fisher & Paykel Appliances 1c to 234, Pumpkin Patch 2c to 195, and Sky City 2c to 359.
- NZPA
