KEY POINTS:
Business tax cuts and KiwiSaver incentives in today's budget helped push the sharemarket up more than 1 percent to a record high.
Blue chips were generally positive, with Fletcher Building surging 4.5 percent to a high of 1275. Rises outnumbered falls 65 to 26.
The benchmark NZSX-50 index closed up 48.11 points, or 1.1 percent, at 4275.57, on turnover of $131.3 million.
Nigel Scott of ABN Amro Craigs said the budget had provided a boost to the market, although it had been in positive territory before the announcement.
"It is clearly responding in a positive way to what tax cuts possibly mean," Mr Scott said.
However, global corporate takeovers, world markets and the strong New Zealand dollar also played an important part.
"People are certainly looking towards strong domestic franchise stories, and clearly Auckland Airports, Contact Energy, Fletcher Building are in that mode because some of them aren't currency-related."
Fletcher was bid up early, closing up 55c, following a takeover bid for Britain's Hanson, the world's second largest construction materials company.
Auckland Airport was flat at 266, Contact rose 17c to 882, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare rose 11c to 368, and F&P Appliances rose 11c to 380.
Telecom had a modest gain, up a cent at 477.
Tower jumped 9c to 230, as a result of the expansion to KiwiSaver.
"There are very few opportunities to get exposure to the New Zealand savings market," Mr Scott said.
Rakon was steady at 520, Sky TV was up 8c at 602, and NZX fell 4c to 980.
Property investment stocks, which benefit from tax changes, posted modest gains. Kiwi Income Property Trust was up 3c at 171, Macquarie Goodman Property Trust rose 2c to 159, and ING Property Trust was up a cent at 124.
Lion Nathan rose 15c to 1030 after the New Zealand operations posted a 3.6 percent rise in pre-tax interim profit, although they remained a drag on the Sydney-based brewer.
Among other dual-listed stocks, ANZ jumped 40c to 3415, Westpac rose 40c to 3090, and AMP was up 3c at 1191 after telling today's AGM the outlook remained positive.
Hellaby was flat at 410 after the investment firm said yesterday its shoe retailing arm, which is on the block, recorded strong sales growth in its April quarter.
- NZPA