Market close: Shares close lower for second day

Tuesday 19th August 2008

The sharemarket fell slightly today with the NZSE50 down -0.45% to end the day at 3,319.

Among top stocks, Telecom dipped 0.9% and Fletcher Building lost 4.2%, while Contact Energy increased 0.5%.

The retailers closed mixed. Hallenstein Glasson gained 0.7% and Michael Hill gained 2.3% but The Warehouse Group and Pumpkin Patch lost 0.6% each.

Other major gainers included Dominion Finance 13.86%, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare 2.4%, Fisher & Paykel Appliances 1.6%, TrustPower 2.1% and Infratil 1.9%.

PGG Wrightson, the rural services company seeking to buy half of meat processor Silver Fern Farms, rose 1.4% after it posted an 80% jump in full-year profit on increased sales and a one-time performance fee.

Among other major losers, Dorchester Pacific fell 11.76%, Pike River Coal lost 1.7%, New Zealand Farming Systems Uruguay dipped 4.7% and Lion Nathan gave away 2.8%,

Banks also had a bad day with Australia and New Zealand Banking Group plummeting 3.0% and WBC losing 1.61%.

Fisher Funds' two listed international share funds, Marlin Global and Barramundi, both posted losses today because of declines in stock prices.

New Zealand's largest investor in office blocks, AMP NZ Office Trust, was up .94% after saying earnings rose 27% as demand helped drive up rents.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index shed 118.6 points, or 2.4%, at 4866.4 after the plunge overnight on Wall Street amid renewed U.S. credit fears, while the broader All Ordinaries dropped 113.1 points, or 2.24%, to 4930.4.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 180.51, or 1.55%, to settle at 11,479.39.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 19.60, or 1.51%, to 1,278.60, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 35.54, or 1.45%, to 2,416.98.

NZ Top 50	3,319.119	-15.026 (-0.45%)
ASX 200	4,866.400	118.600 (-2.38%)
Dow	11,479.39	-180.51 (-1.55%)
Nasdaq	2,416.98	-35.54 (-1.45%)
FTSE 100	5,450.20	-4.60 (-0.08%)

AIA	1.98	-0.01
AIR	1.26	+0.01
AMP	7.91	-0.44
ANZ	20.07	-0.62
APN	3.86	0.00
APT	1.07	+0.01
CAV	2.60	-0.01
CEN	8.63	+0.04
EBO	4.76	-0.04
FBU	6.80	-0.30
FPA	1.88	+0.03
FPH	2.95	+0.07
FRE	3.29	-0.01
GFF	1.84	-0.01
GMT	1.18	0.00
GPG	1.51	-0.01
HLG	2.85	+0.02
IFT	2.20	+0.04
IMP	1.08	+0.01
ING	0.79	-0.01
KIP	1.12	0.00
LNN	10.69	-0.31
MFT	7.14	-0.04
MHI	0.90	+0.02
MVN	1.65	-0.03
NPX	6.40	+0.01
NZO	1.48	+0.02
NZR	6.93	0.00
NZS	1.62	-0.08
NZX	7.57	0.00
PFI	1.17	0.00
PGW	2.84	+0.04
POT	6.92	+0.01
PPL	1.59	-0.01
PRC	1.76	-0.03
RAK	3.03	0.00
RYM	1.72	0.00
SAN	6.15	-0.03
SKC	3.56	+0.01
SKL	0.96	-0.01
SKT	5.03	+0.03
STU	3.27	+0.02
TEL	3.22	-0.03
THL	1.42	0.00
TLS	5.32	-0.13
TPW	7.86	+0.16
TWR	2.29	+0.02
VCT	2.30	+0.02
WBC	27.55	-0.45
WHS	3.41	-0.02

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