Gains eroded on sharemarket

The New Zealand sharemarket slipped into negative territory today when modest early gains were eroded as investors took stock of current prices in the wake of strong advances in the first two days of the week.

The benchmark NZX-50 index closed down 8.733 points, or 0.282 per cent, at 3084.07 after initially opening up 8.35 points.

Turnover was worth $141.4 million. There were 34 rises and 44 falls among the 123 stock traded.

"I guess as the stocks go higher people become more cautious as we go into the reporting season," said Hamilton, Hindin, Greene director Adrian Vance.

The earnings numbers for the six months and year will not say much about the current environment. Investors will be looking at outlook statements.

Hallenstein Glassons fell 3c to 282 today after reporting second half sales rose 7.6 per cent, while acknowledging sales had been at the expense of margin.

Net profit for the full year ended August 1 was projected in the range of $12.2 million to $12.4 million, down about 23 per cent on a year earlier, the company said.

Mr Vance said there was nothing unexpected in the announcement and investors knew retailers' margins were under pressure in the current environment.

The Warehouse fell 1c to 404 and Michael Hill was unchanged at 69. Hellaby fell 2c to 118.

Among the leaders Telecom fell 1c at 285, Fletcher Building fell 6c to 745 and Contact Energy rose 7c to 661.

Ebos rose 10c to 545 and Tourism Holdings rose 3c to 61.

Infratil rose 2c to 184 and Mainfreight rose 4c to 480.

NZOG fell 1c to 163 and Pike River Coal was unchanged at 117.

ING Medical Property fell 1c to 119 and ING Property fell 1c to 72. Goodman Property Trust fell 1c to 98.

Fisher and Paykel Appliances fell 2c to 86.

SkyCity fell 14c to 331and SkyTV rose 7c to 463. Ryman rose 6c to 184.

Trustpower fell 5c to 775, and NZ Refining Co fell 7c to 690, while among the dual-listed banks Westpac fell 30c to 2780 and ANZ fell 65c to 2415.

In the United States, stocks edged higher, led by the financial sector as economic data pointed to a sustained if slow recovery from the recession.

US consumers spent more in June, though partly because of rising petrol prices, and contracts to buy used houses rose more than expected. But income suffered its biggest drop in 4-1/2 years, underscoring fears over growing unemployment.

Stocks soared about 40 per cent from March to May but the surge wilted in June. Gains resumed at the start of the second-quarter earnings season. The broad S&P 500 index is up 48.6 per cent from its 12-year closing low on March 9.

On Tuesday US time, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 33.63 points, or 0.36 per cent, to close at 9320.19. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 3.02 points, or 0.30 per cent, to 1,005.65. The Nasdaq Composite Index edged up 2.70 points, or 0.13 per cent, to end at 2011.31.

- NZPA