KEY POINTS:
Profit taking in the top stocks and fallout from a 1.6 per cent dive on Wall Street pulled the sharemarket down in early business today.
The benchmark NZSX-50 index, which yesterday closed within spitting distance of a record, was down 15.18 points to 4306.10 at 10.15am today.
There were 18 rises and 28 falls among the 82 stocks traded. Total turnover was solid at $73 million.
Worries about the high level of the New Zealand dollar and a possible hike in interest rates tomorrow also dampened sentiment.
Top stock Telecom was down 5c to 480, second-ranked Fletcher Building down 6c to 1294 and Contact Energy off 7c to 930.
In-play stock Auckland Airport was unchanged on 339 despite talk that several rival bidders to Dubai Aerospace Enterprise were circling.
Exchange operator NZX was up 10c to 1160 after it reported its June half year net profit rose 95 per cent to $4.21m. The stock is up from 600 a year ago.
Fisher & Paykel Appliances continued to slide due to the high dollar. Yesterday, it lost 14c and today fell another 2c to 363.
Another exporter Rakon, was off 5c to 475. However, Pumpkin Patch was up 4c to 340.
Meat company Affco, under pressure from the high dollar, fell 2c to 36.
Air NZ was down 4c to 255. It has been under pressure due to concerns that if Dubai Aerospace won its bid for Auckland Airport, it will open the door to rival Emirates setting up a hub there.
Tourism Holdings was steady on 250 after losing 20c yesterday on news MFS Living and Leisure's takeover attempt had failed.
Software of Excellence was up 1c to 265 despite telling shareholders at the annual meeting the high dollar was likely to knock margins and raw profit to the turn of 15 per cent.
Chairman Jim Syme warned the currency had knocked asset values off exporters and United States-based Fortune 500 company Henry Schein, that has offered 270 a share in a takeover bid, could be eying the UK assets of rival dental software distributor Kodak.
Among the minnows, Genesis Research was up 3c to 35.
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Earlier, US stocks went into a tailspin as disappointing news on the corporate earnings front and heightened fears about the housing slump prompted investors to retrench.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 218.01 points to 13,725.41 and the Nasdaq slid 50.71 points to 2639.87 at the closing bell.
The broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index retreated 29.77 points (1.93 per cent) to 1511.80.
- NZPA