KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand sharemarket edged down in early trade after the Dow Jones industrial index recorded a modest fall overnight, although the other two major United States indices rose.
In this country the most heavily traded stock, Telecom, was down 1c early to 239.
Around 10.20am the benchmark NZSX-50 index slipped 5.82 points to 2750.83, following a fall of 7.6 points yesterday.
Ebos Group was down 10c early on low volume to 430, Port of Tauranga lost 7c to 645, Hellaby Holdings lost 4c to 130, and Mainfreight lost 4c to 476.
Stocks losing 2c early included Nuplex to 297, NZ Refining Co to 578, and Pike River Coal to 98.
Among the few stocks to gain early, Fisher & Paykel Appliances lifted 4c to 139, Xero was up 2c to 85, and dual-listed bank Westpac lifted 6c to 2005.
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In the US, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 rose after news that Citigroup Inc agreed to support legislation aimed at stemming home loan foreclosures, offsetting Wal-Mart's disappointing sales and outlook.
President-elect Barack Obama again made a push for a massive economic stimulus plan, though there was some nervousness among investors as specifics of his plan remain unclear.
The Dow ended provisionally down 0.3 per cent, while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 0.3 per cent, and the Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 1.1 per cent.
- NZPA