Sharemarket down early

The New Zealand sharemarket eased in early trading as leading stock Telecom gave up 1 per cent.

Shortly after the market opened Telecom was down 3c to $2.71, having risen 6c yesterday after appearing to shrug off an announcement on government investment in ultrafast broadband that Telecom dubbed disappointing.

A measure of global stocks reached an 11-month high as economic reports supported themes of recovery, but US shares edged lower as some disappointing corporate profits reined in enthusiasm.

European shares reached their highest since early October for a second straight day, with the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares up 0.5 per cent. The broader MSCI world equity index rose 0.4 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 1.7 per cent.

Around 10.15am the benchmark NZX-50 index was down 1.04 points to 3151.76, after gaining 35.2 points, or 1.1 per cent, yesterday.

Dual-listed Australian telco Telstra was down 3c to $4.00, and Sanford lost 4c to $4.96, while Contact Energy was down 1c to $5.93.

Gains were modest, with Mainfreight lifting 3c to $5.33, and The Warehouse gaining 2c to $4.17.

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In the United States, stocks slipped after a three-day runup on concern recent gains were overextended despite the latest round of solid economic data.

Business activity in the mid-Atlantic states jumped more than expected in September and advanced to its highest level since June 2007, underscoring hopes the economic recovery was on track.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.1 per cent to end at 9783.92, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 0.3 per cent at 1065.49, and the Nasdaq Composite Index was down 0.3 per cent at 2126.75.

- NZPA