KEY POINTS:
Shares continued their record losing streak after further volatility on world markets.
The benchmark NZSX-50 index closed down 0.6 percent, or 22.4 points, at 3729.96, on turnover totalling $101.8 million.
The index slumped 1.5 percent yesterday, and has extended its loss this year to around 8 percent during a record 11 consecutive declining sessions.
Don Lewthwaite of First NZ Capital said many investors were waiting for the dust to settle, as volatile world markets displayed nervousness about the international credit crisis and fear of a United States recession.
"There's not a lot of private client selling, it's just institutions with their trading portfolios doing a bit of selling at the fringes," Mr Lewthwaite said.
"[Investors are] still unsure about which way America especially is going economically, and people aren't willing to bet too big until that's clarified."
Domestic corporate news was thin on the ground, and was likely to remain so until companies begin reporting their December period financial results.
"As far as we know, New Zealand corporates are trading pretty well, so we're quite relaxed about the fundamental value they offer," he said.
Top stock Telecom was down a cent at 413. Both Fletcher Building and Contact Energy slid to 13-month lows, down 10c at 1020 and 22c at 775 respectively.
Both stocks hit record highs last year.
Auckland International Airport was down 3c at 268, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare lost 10c to 322, F&P Appliances lost a cent to 287, Vector fell 2c to 218, Sky City lost 2c to 411 and Sky TV fell 7c to 540.
The Warehouse recovered from earlier weakness to close up 3c at 575.
Freightways was down 4c at 350, carpet maker Cavalier was down 9c at 260, Air New Zealand lost 2c to 178, Nuplex fell 25c to 620, Tourism Holdings was down 7c at 208, and Pumpkin Patch was down a cent at 237.
On the positive side, Mainfreight was up 2c at 597, Rakon rose 2c to 340, GuocoLeisure was up 4c at 81c, ING Medical Properties was up 3c at 115, and Sanford rose 4c to 4c to 391.
Among dual-listed stocks, ANZ was up 55c at 3000, Westpac was up 58c at 2940, AMP was down 5c at 970, Lion Nathan slid 40c to 1020, and APN News was up 20c at 610.
Abano Healthcare fell 10c to 490 after Masthead quit its 19.9 percent stake but did not sell to takeover aspirant, Crescent Capital Partners.
Masthead sold the stake instead to an Abano subsidiary part-owner, Healthcare Industry, at $5.20 per share, matching Crescent's offer price.
AMP NZ Office Trust (ANZO) was up 5c at 117 after an Abu Dhabi investment fund said it was taking a 19.9 percent stake and partnering with fellow ANZO investor, AMP Capital Investors.
Australia's benchmark index was down 0.2 percent at 5795.9, while Japan's Nikkei share average was up 0.8 percent.
Overnight, US stocks tumbled again, with the S&P 500 diving to a 14-month low after a disappointing profit and outlook from Intel.
The session had been volatile, with the Dow rising and falling by as much as 100 points.
- NZPA
