MARKET CLOSE: Sharemarket eases slightly

Wednesday 2nd March 2011

The New Zealand sharemarket eased slightly today but it performed better than many markets.

The corporate reporting season is coming to an end so there was less information for investors absorb.

The benchmark NZX-50 index closed down 2.399 points, or 0.071%, at 3381.993. Turnover was worth $82.9 million. There were 31 rises and 50 falls among the 117 stocks traded.

James Lee, head of institutional equities at First NZ Capital, said property stocks were firm on the prospect of an interest rate cut and leading shares were relatively firm mostly because their price is set in Australia and it adjusted in this market when the New Zealand dollar fell today.

The NZ dollar fell sharply today after Prime Minister John Key said he expects the central bank will cut interest rates to bolster the economy after last week's earthquake in Christchurch.

Fletcher Building (NZX: FBU ) fell 20c to $8.54, but a 16 cent a share dividend was no longer payable on the stock. Argosy Property and AMP were also trading ex dividend today.

Contact Energy (NZX: CEN ) fell 2c to $6.15 and Telecom (NZX: TEL ) rose a cent to $2.16.

OceanaGold (NZX: OGC ) rose 5c to $3.60, Scott Technology (NZX: SCT ) rose a cent to $1.32 and Steel & Tube (NZX: STU ) rose 3c to $2.63.

SkyCity (NZX: SKC ) rose 4c to $3.34 and Sanford (NZX: SAN ) rose 6c to $5.10. Auckland Airport (NZX: AIA ) rose a cent to $2.22, but Air NZ (NZX: AIR ) fell 3c to $1.30.

AMP office (NZX: ANO ) rose 2c to 83, DNZ Property (NZX: DNZ ) rose a cent to $1.20 and Goodman Property (NZX: GMT ) rose a cent to 93. Kiwi Income Property Trust (NZX: KIP ) rose a cent to $1.01, but Argosy Property (NZX: ARG ) fell 2c to $6.15.

Pumpkin Patch (NZX: PPL ) fell 3c to $1.28 and Hallenstein Glassons (NZX: HLG ) fell 5c to $3.55.

In the US, concerns that rising oil prices could hurt economic recovery prompted investors to sell stocks and hedge against further declines.

The CBOE Volatility Index VIX, Wall Street's so-called fear gauge, jumped 13.3% to 20.79 on growing uncertainty about oil.

Brent crude oil pushed back above US$115 a barrel as supply disruptions persist and unrest spreads in the Middle East and North Africa.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 1.4% to 12,056.96, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 1.6% to 1306.18, and the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 1.6% to 2737.41.

NZPA

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