KEY POINTS:
New Zealand shares today clawed back some of the ground lost in yesterday's 1 per cent tumble , inspired by Wall St.
The NZSX-50 benchmark index rose 0.38 per cent or 16.36 points to 4291.04, mirroring a rebound by world markets since the 20th anniversary of the 1987 sharemarket crash last Friday.
Rises outnumbered falls 75 to 36 on moderate total turnover of $72 million.
Last night the Dow Jones rose 0.8 per cent and today Asian stocks were up almost 2 per cent as investors set aside their concerns.
Back in New Zealand, the market had a firm tone but lacked corporate news, Grant Williamson, a partner in Hamilton, Hindin, Greene, noted.
"It's still quite light volume so most investors are still quite happy to sit on the sidelines. I think Friday night's fall on the Dow Jones just made one or two people a wee bit unsettled as to the direction of the market in the short to medium-term."
Leaders were strong, including Telecom up 2c to 450, Contact up 3c to 933 and Fletcher Building, up 16c to 1234, after a media report this week that Fletcher and Boral were considering a joint bid for Carter Holt's building assets.
"Fletcher Building has bounced back from quite a reasonable selloff over the last three or four trading days, so just bargain hunters coming back into the marketplace there," Mr Williamson said.
One positive piece of news was a record interim profit from Dominion Finance Holdings, despite the recent turmoil among finance companies.
Shares in DFH were up 11c or 7 per cent to 163 on reasonable volume.
Medical supplies company Abano rose 3 per cent or 15c to 450 after its board recommended shareholders reject a majority takeover bid from Masthead Portfolios for $3.85 a share.
However, the share price was still below the $5.40 mid-point of an independent valuation.
"There's been some expressions of interest from other parties, so it's a case of `watch this space'," Mr Williamson said.
Transport company Mainfreight was also a strong performer, up 14c to 721.
Chemicals group Nuplex Industries was down 4c to 761 after saying it expected significant earnings growth over the next two years as it looks to raise cash .
Auckland Airport rose a cent to 312, and Sky City was flat at 540. Both stocks were holding firm as investors patiently waited more details about prospective takeover or partial takeover bids.
The Warehouse jumped 10c to 565, up 20c in two days as Woolworth's and Foodstuff's appeal against the Commerce Commission's ruling on their takeover bids for the Red Shed continues.
Provenco surged for a second day, up 5c to 74 today following yesterday's news it was looking to merge with fellow eftpos company Cadmus. Cadmus rose 1.3c to 17.8c after losing nearly 11 per cent yesterday.
Other movers included Rakon, up 13c to 521, Trustpower, up 6c to 920, and Hallenstein Glasson erased yesterday's losses, up 9c to 459. Ryman bucked recent trends to rise 4c to 212.
- NZPA