NZ sharemarket slips early

Tuesday 7th December 2010

The New Zealand sharemarket slipped in early trading, after stocks in the US took a breather.

Around 10.15am the benchmark NZX-50 index was down 2.2 points to 3290.98, after yesterday gaining 9.9 points.

Trustpower (NZX: TPW ) fell 15c to 722, Telecom (NZX: TEL ) lost 2c to 216 after yesterday gaining 3c, Contact Energy (NZX: CEN ) was down 2c to 619, and Fletcher Building (NZX: FBU ) edged down 1c to 789.

Air New Zealand (NZX: AIR ) also fell 2c, to 139, as regulators in this country and Australia are thought to be close to deciding on its proposed alliance with Virgin Blue.

Port of Tauranga (NZX: POT ) gained 5c to 740, Turners & Growers (NZX: TUR ) was up 3c to 150, Vector (NZX: VCT ) added 2c to 245, and Pumpkin Patch (NZX: PPL ) added 2c to 167.

In the US, investors were held in check by worries about Europe's debt crisis, frustrating investors looking for a reason to take stocks to new highs on the year.

Based on preliminary data, the Dow Jones industrial average slipped 0.2% to 11,362.19, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 0.1% to 1223.12, and the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.1% to 2594.92.

NZPA

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