The New Zealand sharemarket slipped in early trading after the Reserve Bank left the official cash rate unchanged at 2.5 per cent today.
Announcing the rate decision, Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard warned of the risks posed by the strength of the New Zealand dollar.
"A stronger dollar at a time of weak global growth risks delaying or even reversing the projected increase in exports, putting the sustainability of recovery at risk."
Immediately after the decision to hold rates, the NZ dollar rose from around US62.50c to US63.10c.
Among leading shares, Telecom was down 2c to $2.60, Fletcher Building lost 4c to $6.85 and Contact Energy dropped 2c to $5.64.
Around 10.15am the benchmark NZX-50 index was down 4.56 points to 2823.41, having yesterday risen 5.6 points.
The main early gain today was by Mainfreight, which lifted 5c to $4.20, while Ryman Healthcare gained 2c to $1.60 and NZ Oil & Gas lifted 2c to $1.63.
Early losers included Freightways down 2c to $2.98 and Methven down 2c to $1.35.
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In the United States, stocks fell on worries that rising interest rates could put a damper on consumer and business spending, but stocks pared losses late in the session to finish off the day's lows.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.3 per cent to 8739.02, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index slid 0.4 per cent to 939.15, and the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.4 per cent to 1853.08.
- NZPA
<i>NZ stocks:</i> Market slips after Bollard holds OCR
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