NZ stocks: Spotlight on AMP, Tower during light trading

12.00pm

Insurance and financial companies AMP and Tower were in the spotlight today as New Zealand shares edged downward again slightly.

Just after 11am, the benchmark NZSE-40 capital index was down 7.50 points to 1983.36 on turnover of 19.3 million.

AMP, which yesterday tumbled 85c to 1125, fell to a new low of 1080, down 45c, in mid-morning trade after news the company expected further losses.

AMP expects a 2002 net loss after unusuals of around A$900 million ($975.6 million). The stock has virtually halved in price, falling from a year high of $23.70c on troubles with its British unit, Pearl.

New Zealand's troubled Tower Group was also in the spotlight, topping turnover both by volume and value. It eased 4c to 198 on 2.7 million shares worth $5.5 million.

Brokers said a brokerage that had bought 3.5 per cent of Tower shares for a client last month had traded 2.6 million shares, a 1.5 per cent stake, overnight.

But Don Turkington, executive director at Forsyth Barr Frater Williams, said it was a very small stake that could have gone to anyone. He believed negative sentiment from AMP appeared to be rubbing off onto Tower.

"There's still a lot of caution about the whole insurance sector."

Carter Holt slid 6c to 174 ahead of its result on January 29.

Tranz Rail lost 8c to 129 as speculation continued to swirl about whether the Government would make an offer to buy back the national track network.

Other moves include Fletcher Building, initially up 4c but now steady at 330; Cavalier up 10c to 380; Contact down 2c to 405; Richmond up 5c to 280; Sky City up 7c to 855; Trustpower up 10c to 370; and Telecom up a cent to 456.

So far there have been 26 rises and 28 falls on 106 stocks traded.

On Wall St, stocks fell for the fourth straight session as a warning from President George W Bush and the US troop build-up against Iraq rattled investors already worried over the corporate outlook at the height of earnings reporting season.

The blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average dropped 143.84 points, or 1.68 per cent, to 8,442.90 . The broad Standard & Poor's 500 Index sagged 14.16 points, or 1.57 per cent, to 887.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 11.94 points, or 0.87 per cent, to 1,364.25.

- NZPA