NZ stocks: Carter Holt and Telecom drags down sharemarket

5.57pm

The sharemarket turned in another wooden performance today, dragged down by Carter Holt Harvey and a lacklustre Telecom.

The benchmark NZSX-50 gross index fell 13.23 points to 2733.82. The NZSX-All capital index was slightly perkier, down just 3.179 points to 912.25.

Goldman Sachs JB Were's Murray Rutherford said the flat New Zealand sharemarket was indicative of sluggish activity on global equity markets.

He said activity could pick up locally when there is more certainty about what is happening with interest rates. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand is meeting next Thursday and is widely expected to up the official cash rate by 25 basis points to 6.25 per cent.

Among the market leaders to move today, bellwether stock Telecom fell 1c to 571. The telco giant today came under fire from its Australian-owned rival TelstraClear for itsaggressive new advertising campaign for a new call plan. TelstraClear has complained to the Commerce Commission about what it calls Telecom's "misleading and unlawful behaviour". Shares in Telstra were unchanged at 516.

Number two stock Carter Holt Harvey headed south today, down 7c to 232. Macquarie Equities today downgraded Carter Holt to "neutral", due to expectations softening pulp prices could impact the company's earnings over the next three years. Mr Rutherford said data out yesterday showed European pulp prices had fallen for the ninth week in a row.

Among stocks on the rise today was Powerco, up 1c to 206, despite reports yesterday that opponents of its impending sale to Australia's Prime Infrastructure Trust were pressuring the Overseas Investment Commission to stop the deal, saying it was not in the national interest.

Total market turnover today was worth $100 million. Movements were fairly evenly split, with 49 rises and 47 falls recorded among the 152 stocks traded today.

Other stocks on the move today included: Auckland International Airport down 6c at 727, Lion Nathan up 9c at 770, Waste Management down 7c at 493, Promina down 6c at 465, Hellaby up 12c at 570 and Cavalier down 4c at 495.

- NZPA