Market close: Market trades lower

Tuesday 29th July 2008

The sharemarket fell slightly today with the NZSE50 down -0.64% to end the day at 3,236.

Top stock Telecom fell 0.6% and Fletcher Building plunged 3.7%, but second-ranked Contact Energy advanced 0.4%.

In the retail sector, Pumpkin Patch increased 2.8% but Hallenstein Glasson lost 1.8% and The Warehouse Group decreased 0.8%, while Michael Hill closed unchanged.

Among other major gainers, Steel & Tube Holdings rose 5.6%, Auckland International Airport dipped 1.1%, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare climbed 1.2%, Infratil gained 1.4% and Sky Network Television advanced 1.1%.

Other major losers included ING Medical Properties 3.5%, Ryman Healthcare 3.0%, Cavalier 2.1%, Goodman Fielder 2.3%, Telstra 2.3% and Westpac 2.4%.

Renaissance Corp, an e-commerce, software and IT sales group, posted a 10% gain as it reiterated its forecast for a "small" increase in full-year profit today.

Methven closed unchanged after the tap-ware maker, whose stock outperformed the NZX 50 Index in the past three months, said a full-year's contribution from its UK unit and growth in Australia will help lift earnings this year.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 74.7 points to 4847.4 at the close of trading, with the big banks taking major hits on their share prices, although the resource sector fared much better.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 239.61 points, or 2.11%, to 11,131.08 and the Standard & Poor's 500 broad-market index lost 22.39 points to 1,234.37, after Wall St fell 2% on predictions the worst of the housing crisis was yet to come and crude oil closed up on Monday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite slipped 46.31 points to 2,264.22.

NZ Top 50	3,235.502	-21.072 (-0.65%)
ASX 200	4,847.400	-74.700 (-1.52%)
Dow	11,131.08	-239.61 (-2.11%)
Nasdaq	2,264.22	-46.31 (-2.00%)
FTSE 100	5,312.60	-40.00 (-0.75%)

NZX TOP 50
As at: 29/07/2008 5:33pm
CODE	LAST	+/-
AIA	1.88	+0.02
AIR	1.23	-0.02
AMP	8.35	+0.03
ANZ	20.15	-0.35
APN	4.20	0.00
APT	1.11	0.00
CAV	2.35	-0.05
CEN	8.20	+0.03
EBO	4.52	-0.08
FBU	6.25	-0.24
FPA	1.95	-0.03
FPH	2.60	+0.03
FRE	3.00	-0.03
GFF	1.68	-0.04
GMT	1.13	-0.01
GPG	1.33	-0.02
HLG	2.80	-0.05
IFT	2.24	+0.03
IMP	1.11	-0.04
ING	0.82	0.00
KIP	1.13	-0.02
LNN	10.93	-0.15
MFT	6.50	-0.07
MHI	0.80	0.00
MVN	1.60	0.00
NPX	5.35	-0.05
NZO	1.53	0.00
NZR	6.60	-0.13
NZS	1.80	-0.02
NZX	7.50	-0.10
PFI	1.19	+0.01
PGW	2.64	-0.05
POT	6.50	0.00
PPL	1.45	+0.04
PRC	1.97	-0.01
RAK	2.68	-0.02
RYM	1.63	-0.05
SAN	5.33	+0.03
SKC	3.37	-0.03
SKL	0.86	+0.01
SKT	4.55	+0.05
STU	2.85	+0.15
TEL	3.59	-0.02
THL	1.48	0.00
TLS	5.65	-0.13
TPW	7.70	-0.05
TWR	2.13	-0.02
VCT	2.13	+0.02
WBC	25.87	-0.63
WHS	3.88	-0.03

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