NZ shares up in early trading

The New Zealand sharemarket edged up early, after rises on seven consecutive trading days saw the benchmark NZX-50 index pass the 2900 level for the first time in nine months yesterday.

Today's small early advance came as Fletcher Building lifted 5c to $6.95 after profit-taking yesterday saw it drop 14c following a rise from $6.40 at the start of the month.

Around 10.15am the NZX-50 index was up 2.29 points to 2902.73, on top of its 27.3-point gain yesterday.

Auckland Airport was up 1c early to $1.62 after announcing the signing of a joint venture to build a $65 million Novotel hotel at the airport. Steel & Tube shares were up 2c to $3.02.

Shares falling early included Port of Tauranga, down 5c to $6.25, NZ Refining Co down 5c to $7.00, Hellaby Holdings down 3c to $1.25, and NZ Oil & Gas down 2c to $1.59.

Leading stock Telecom slipped 1c early to $2.82, with Contact Energy unchanged on $6.08.

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In the United States, the Nasdaq rose for the 11th straight day, buoyed by solid profits from Apple Inc and Starbucks Corp, while disappointing bank results and declining energy shares weighed on the broader market.

The Dow Jones industrial average shed 0.4 per cent to 8881.26, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index dipped 0.1 per cent to 954.07, while the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.5 per cent to 1926.38.

The S&P 500 briefly hit a 2009 intraday high of 959.83.

- NZPA