KEY POINTS:
Telecom shares slipped to a fresh 15-year low early today, as the New Zealand sharemarket dropped in the wake of falls in US stocks.
Telecom was down 4c to 318 early, while Fletcher Building dropped 5c to 675 after its 30c decline yesterday as the building supplies and construction stock gave up to profit-taking some of the strong gains seen in recent days.
Around 10.15am today the benchmark NZSX-50 was down 21 points to 3298.12, following a 15-point fall yesterday.
Other shares to fall early included Contact Energy, down 13c to 850, Port of Tauranga 13c to 679, Sky City 2c to 354, Pike River Coal 2c to 174, and Air New Zealand 2c to 124.
Tourism Holdings was down 1c early to 141, after reporting full year net profit up 7 per cent to $14.3m. Sky TV, which posted a 25.5 per cent increase in full year net profit to $97.7m, was unchanged early on 503.
Among few shares to rise early was NZ Farming Systems Uruguay up 3c to 165.
PGG Wrightson was up 3c early to 287, having risen 4c yesterday after posting an 80 per cent increase in annual net profit to $73.2m on improvements across the board, and indicating a solid result this year.
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US stocks fell for a second straight session as credit worries hit bank shares and a report showing inflation remains a threat despite slower growth stoked the market's anxiety.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.14 per cent to 11,348.55. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index slid 0.93 per cent to 1266.69. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 1.35 per cent to 2384.36.
- NZPA
