KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand stock market opened in a quiet, but positive frame of mind this morning, rising 0.304 per cent in the first 20 minutes of trading.
The NZX-50 index kicked off at 3187.961 and went up 9.68 points to 3197.641.
It is now up 34 points, a 1 per cent rise to 3222. Telecom shares are up 4 cents to $2.86, Contact Energy is up 7c to $8.01 and Fletcher Building is up 7c to $7.23.
Yesterday the market soared as much as it plunged the day before, but more volatile trading predicted for this morning did not eventuate.
New Zealand's calm followed a calmer day in the US financial markets, where on Wednesday investors uneasily awaited a Senate vote on the banking bailout plan, with Wall Street closing with only modest losses and the credit markets still showing signs of strain.
The Dow Jones industrials zigzagged during the session, losing more than 200 points in early trading but closing down about 20 - a far cry from the huge swings the blue chips saw during the first two sessions of the week.
Financial markets likely will remain nervous until voting on Capitol Hill is complete.
The Dow fell 19.59, or 0.18 per cent, to 10,831.07.
The blue chip index fell 778 points Monday, its steepest drop in years, after lawmakers rejected the bailout plan, then rallied 485 points Tuesday on hopes party leaders would find the votes to pass the measure.
Broader stock indicators were narrowly lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 5.30, or 0.45 per cent, to 1161.06, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 22.48, or 1.07 per cent, to 2069.40.
- NZPA
