Fletcher Building falls 20c, stocks ease slightly

File photo / NZH

The New Zealand sharemarket eased slightly today but it performed better than many markets.

The corporate reporting season is coming to an end so there was less information for investors absorb.

The benchmark NZX-50 index closed down 2.399 points, or 0.071 per cent, at 3381.993. Turnover was worth $82.9 million. There were 31 rises and 50 falls among the 117 stocks traded.

James Lee, head of institutional equities at First NZ Capital, said property stocks were firm on the prospect of an interest rate cut and leading shares were relatively firm mostly because their price is set in Australia and it adjusted in this market when the New Zealand dollar fell today.

The NZ dollar fell sharply today after Prime Minister John Key said he expects the central bank will cut interest rates to bolster the economy after last week's earthquake in Christchurch.

Fletcher Building fell 20c to 854, but a 16 cent a share dividend was no longer payable on the stock. Argosy Property and AMP were also trading ex dividend today.

Contact Energy fell 2c to 615 and Telecom rose a cent to 216.

OceanaGold rose 5c to 360, Scott Technology rose a cent to 132 and Steel & Tube rose 3c to 263.

SkyCity rose 4c to 334 and Sanford rose 6c to 510. Auckland Airport rose a cent to 222, but Air NZ fell 3c to 130.

AMP office rose 2c to 83, DNZ Property rose a cent to 120 and Goodman Property rose a cent to 93. Kiwi Income Property Trust rose a cent to 101, but Argosy Property fell 2c to 615.

Pumpkin Patch fell 3c to 128 and Hallenstein Glassons fell 5c to 355.

In the US, concerns that rising oil prices could hurt economic recovery prompted investors to sell stocks and hedge against further declines.

The CBOE Volatility Index VIX, Wall Street's so-called fear gauge, jumped 13.3 per cent to 20.79 on growing uncertainty about oil.

Brent crude oil pushed back above US$115 a barrel as supply disruptions persist and unrest spreads in the Middle East and North Africa.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 1.4 per cent to 12,056.96, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 1.6 per cent to 1306.18, and the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 1.6 per cent to 2737.41.

- NZPA