NZ shares firm a tad in light turnover

By NZPA

Friday 5th January 2007

The sharemarket firmed slightly on light volume as many investors remained on holiday today.

"There's really not too many stories -- it's all very, very quiet," First NZ Capital broker James Snell said.

The NZX-50 benchmarket index rose just 0.15% or 6.30 points to 4035.26 on muted total turnover of nearly $55 million.

Falling oil prices were thought to be one factor in the positive tone of the market and as commodity prices came back and currencies unwound, there was "a lot of selling around resources" particularly out of Australia.

It was likely to take a while before exporting stocks reflected what appeared to be a weakening kiwi currency as a result of a bounce in the US dollar, Snell said.

During the day, Mooring Systems completed its reverse takeover of the Dutch company Cavotec and relisted as Cavotec MSL Holdings, and shares rose 10c to $4.90.

Contact rose 5c to $8.30 after an initial flurry of excitement yesterday that its Australian majority owner, Origin Energy, might be looking at a merger with AGL.

Other moves included Fletcher Building, down 8c to $10.82; Fisher & Paykel Appliances down 5c to $3.79; F&P Healthcare up 4c to $4.30; Mainfreight flat at $7.97; Steel & Tube down 7c to 44.88; Sky TV up 3c to $6.45; and Infratil down 4c to $5.39.

Rises only just outpaced falls 42 to 41 on 139 stocks traded.

Across the Tasman, Australian shares fell 0.2% as mining stocks fell on lower copper prices, but QBE Insurance Group Ltd. surged on a US buy.

On Wall St, the Nasdaq jumped more than 1%, and the Dow Jones edged up 0.05% after positive analyst comments on technology and biotech stocks.

A drop in oil prices below $56 a barrel also increased optimism about corporate profits. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 6.17 points to end at 12,480.69 and the Nasdaq climbed 30.27 points, or 1.25%, to close at 2,453.43.

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