Sharemarket edges up early

The New Zealand sharemarket edged up in early trading today, even as Mainfreight shares tumbled nearly 2 per cent.

Around 10.15am the benchmark NZX-50 index was up 2.12 points to 3109.73, after yesterday starting strongly but then fading to close 5.4 points lower.

Mainfreight lost 10c early to $5.50, while Steel & Tube dropped 4c to $2.90.

Leading stocks managed early gains with Fletcher Building up 4c to $7.69, Telecom gaining 1c to $2.47 and Contact Energy also lifting 1c, to $5.91.

NZ Refining Co lifted 5c to $4.60, and retailer Hallenstein Glasson was up 5c to $3.25, but on low volume. Lyttelton Port was up 8c to $2.58 and Windflow Technology up 5c to $1.50.

The National Property Trust was unchanged on 47c after lifting its half year distributable profit 1.5 per cent to $4.85 million.

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In the United States, stocks slipped on lacklustre economic data in a session marked by low volume and choppy trading ahead of the Thanksgiving Day holiday, but losses eased after the Federal Reserve increased its expectations for growth in 2010.

The Dow Jones industrial average provisionally ended down 0.2 per cent at 10,433.71, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index dipped 0.1 per cent to 1105.65, and the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.3 per cent to close at 2169.18.

- NZPA