KEY POINTS:
Leading stocks provided some action for a listless New Zealand sharemarket today, but not enough to lift the index into positive territory.
The benchmark NZSX-50 index fell 0.2 per cent or 10.7 points to 4209.07. Turnover was a solid $183m on 50 rises and 49 falls.
ABN Amro Craigs retail equities adviser Nigel Scott said today's pick-up in trading was a relief.
"The last two weeks there's been no conviction follow-through in our market. Compared to offshore markets, we certainly don't seem to have participated in the global flow into Asia or Australasia ."
Auckland Airport was a major feature, tumbling 21c or 6 per cent to 287 on turnover worth $24m, after the airport board pulled out of talks with would-be controlling stakeholder Canada Pension Plan Investment Board .
Mr Scott predicted hedge funds would exit the stock now that two potential takeover bids had failed.
"The market had basically discounted a potential bid anyway. They always said it was too hard.
"I wouldn't think retail is going to be a seller of Auckland Airport ... People will look at the company on its merits and also where to for any other players on the register."
Telecom accounted for $73.7 million of the turnover, up 7c to 434, while trans-Tasman stock Fletcher Building continued its general weakening trend .
It dropped 24c to 1186 on $21.5m worth of shares, a day after a drop in September building consents and as the Australian building sector hits harder times.
Trading in engineering consultancy Opus slowed on the second day of its listing, and the share price consolidated after closing at $1.99 yesterday, well above its $1.65 offer price.
Today it rose 2c to 201 on about one-eighth of yesterday's total turnover.
Contact Energy was flat at 906, Sky City was up 5c to 537 on volume worth $14.6m, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare fell 4c to 325 and F&P Appliances eased 2c to 351.
Volume outside the leaders was low. PGG Wrightson was flat at 210, a 16-month high, and electricity generator Trustpower fell 7c to 928 after reporting a 7 per cent rise in interim net profit.
Technology stock Provenco fell 3c to 67 after its annual meeting, and VTL dropped 7 per cent or 0.5c to 6c after the stock exchange threatened to suspend its shares for failing to file results.
It was a strong day for dual-listed stocks, with ANZ up 69c to 3605, Westpac up 61c to 3651, AMP up 23c to 1240, and Lion Nathan up 11c to 1106.
- NZPA