NZ Stocks: Sharemarket improves slightly during morning trading

12.00 pm

In a continuation of its recent pattern, the New Zealand sharemarket opened lower today, amid more quiet trading and after mixed performances on world sharemarkets overnight.

Most major markets - except Paris - closed lower and Hong Kong was on holiday.

The market improved slightly during the morning and at 11am the NZSE-40 index stood at 2038.30 - down 3.02 points - or 0.15 per cent - but up from an opening 2034.88.

The NZSE-SCI capital index was 6.14 points - or 0.11 per cent - higher, at 5443.22, against an opening 5440.91.

Turnover at 11am was 7.22 million shares, worth $24.64 million and of the 117 traded, 22 rose but 37 fell.

"Our market was very quiet at the opening and it's becoming a real battle to find anything company specific to focus on," Geoff Brown, at J P Morgan Chase said.

"There were price movements of course but no real news behind them and I suspect we can expect more of the quiet trend of last week for the rest of today."

Power company Trustpower was steady at 365 at 11am, on turnover of 725,646 shares worth $2.65 million.

Brokers said they saw shareholders Alliant International NZ Ltd - steady at 2866 and Infratil NZ Ltd - 3c higher at 140 - continuing to buy shares in the company after picking up a 1.4 per cent stake on Monday to take their combined holdings to 45.4 per cent.

Debt collector Receivables Management Group RMG Ltd was a cent lower at 28 on turnover of 180,500 shares. It said yesterday that it planned to raise $NZ8.8 million, through the exercise of options, to reduce debt and continue expansion.

Tranz Rail was steady at 372 after being untraded in New York on Monday.

Melbourne-based West Coast Railways said today it had agreed on terms by which it would buy Tranz Rail's Tranz Scenic long distance passenger services.

WCR's general manager Don Gibson told NZPA that WCR had agreed a "terms sheet" - "a set of conditions on which we can get together to purchase Tranz Scenic".

He denied an earlier report that the sale had been agreed.

Sky City lost 10c to 1100, WestpacTrust did the same to 1610, Air NZ's domestic A shares were a cent lower at 110 and the freely held B shares were unchanged at 141.

Australia is in fear of Singapore Airlines gaining control of Air NZ because Qantas could be at considerable risk if SIA succeeded in taking control of it and its subsidiary Ansett Australia, industry expert, Peter Harbison, said yesterday.

Market heavyweight Telecom - which has a 23 per cent weighting in the Top 40 index - was a couple of cents lower at 543 on turnover of 404,219 shares, worth $2.19 million and Telstra lost 15c to 670.

Fisher and Paykel lost 5c to 1150, Brierley Investments was steady at 65, PDL Holdings was unchanged at 1000 and Fletcher Challenge spin-off Rubicon was a cent higher at 63.

Fletcher Building was steady at 229 and Fletcher Forests preference shares rose a cent to 29, in line with the company's main shares that dropped a cent to 29.

Meat exporter Richmond gained 6c to 240, Auckland International Airport dropped a cent to 367, Lion Nathan was a cent higher at 540 and Montana Group was steady at 480.

Pay TV operator Sky TV was 5c higher at 340, part owner, Independent Newspapers, was a couple of cents lower at 357 and wood-products firm, Carter Holt Harvey, was unchanged at 168.

The Warehouse was steady at 548, Contact Energy rose 4c to to 294 and Waste Management shed 9c to 370.

In other activity, drinks company Frucor was unchanged at 162, financial-services company Tower was steady at 528, AMP shed 9c to 2581 and Baycorp was unchanged at 1270.

Tower was topping turnover - by value - at 11am, with 515,656 shares worth $2.73 million.

- NZPA