KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand sharemarket took a hit today from a renewed selloff of global equity markets but there was consolation in the knowledge that other markets fell more.
The benchmark NZSX-50 index closed down 54.911 points, or 1.303 per cent, to 4158.389. Ninety five stocks fell in price and 21 rose.
The Australian market was down 3 per cent shortly after the NZ market closed.
It was not a good day but brokers said there was no panic selling on the New Zealand market. Rather, buyers just stepped back.
They said stocks that had been subject to takeover speculation fell on the argument that funding for takeovers may be harder to get.
Share markets around Asia fell today after another USA mortgage lender, American Home Mortgage Investment Corp, said it would have to liquidate assets.
The relatively high quality of its loans raised worries about the whole USA mortgage market, driving the S&P 500 index down 1.3 per cent. The Dow Jones industrial average slid 1.10 per cent, to 13,211.99. For the month, the Dow was down 1.5 per cent.
In Australia, Macquarie Bank fell after it warned that retail investors face losses of up to a quarter in two of its high-yielding investment funds.
ABN Amro Craigs broker Matt Willis said there was a re-rating of risk underway globally and risk premiums were rising.
But the events currently playing out would not affect the company reporting season getting underway in New Zealand.
"What's driving this market is buyers stepping back, creating an oversupply of stock," he said.
He said the Australian market was down more because financial institutions made up more of that market.
Telecom was down 5c to 449, following an 11c drop yesterday after the Commerce Commission released proposed charges for access to the company's local network.
Contact Energy was down 5c to 920, on top of an 18c fall yesterday, with the company announcing it has filed resource consent applications for its proposed Te Mihi geothermal power station.
Mainfreight, which is taking control of a freight forwarding business in China, reversed yesterday's 4c gain to be down 18c at 740, while Freightways was down 7c to 394.
Fletcher Building was down 16c to 1234, Auckland International Airport down 2c to 330, Port of Tauranga lost 15c to 680.
Trustpower was down 11c at 824 and Tower down 6c at 226.
The Warehouse was down 1c at 609.
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was down 5c at 333 and the appliances stock down 2c at 355. Infratil was down 8c at 306.
- NZPA