NZ shares down early

Leading stocks Telecom and Contact Energy were lower as the New Zealand sharemarket fell in early trading.

The benchmark NZX-50 index isdown 11 points to 3137, having lost 35 points on Friday as investors around the world start to have concerns about the strength of global economic recovery.

Contact Energy shares were down 4c early to $5.82 and Telecom was down 2c to $2.61, while another leading stock, Fletcher Building, was unchanged on $8.38.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare fell 8c to $3.12 after it was reported an analyst had suggested the company's business in the United States could be affected by healthcare reform in the US.

Other stocks falling early included Nuplex, down 9c to $2.33, Trustpower down 5c to $7.45, NZ Refining Co down 5c to $4.80, Auckland Airport down 2c to $1.88, Hallenstein Glasson down 2c to $2.86, Sky City down 2c to $3.26, and Tower down 2c to $1.64.

The few early risers included NZ Farming Systems Uruguay, up 2c to 45, and NZ Oil & Gas up 2c to $1.64.

***

In the US, shares prices slid after deeper-than-expected US job losses ignited fears that a soft American labour market could slow the pace of economic recovery.

The slide was partially offset by positive broker comments on companies in the tech and financial sectors.

US employers cut 263,000 jobs, helping to lift the US unemployment rate to a 26-year high of 9.8 per cent from 9.7 per cent in August.

"The number is going to put a real crimp on anticipation of a strong recovery," said Joseph Trevisani, senior market analyst at FX Solutions in Saddle River, New Jersey. "The number of job losses is moving in the wrong direction."

The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 0.2 per cent at 9487.67, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 0.5 per cent at 1025.21, and the Nasdaq Composite Index was down 0.5 per cent at 2048.11.

- NZPA