The sharemarket ended positively yesterday, led by Telecom and following a good session on Wall St. The NZSX-50 index rose 5.73 points to 4233.74.
Telecom rose 9c to $4.62 on solid turnover, having lost 6c on Monday. It surpassed Friday's level when it rose 11c in the wake
of the appointment of BT's Paul Reynolds as CEO. After the market closed on Monday, US broker Citigroup said it had raised its recommendation on Telecom to a buy from hold.
Fletcher Building remained flat after soft housing data from the US and Australia, falling 8c to $12.27. Third-ranked Contact Energy also fell 8c to $9.02.
"We're lacking news still in the marketplace, there's not a lot of news anywhere," said Hamilton Hindin Greene partner Grant Williamson.
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was down 4c at $3.30, Auckland International Airport was steady at $3.28, and SkyCity rose 2c to $5.02.
Tourism Holdings rose 4c to $2.54 after forecasting annual net profit at the upper end of previous guidance. THL is the subject of a $2.80-per-share takeover offer by Australia's MFS Living and Leisure.
Freightways was up 9c to $4.09, after announcing on Monday it had bought information management businesses on both sides of the Tasman.
Small cap honey company Comvita fell 13c to $3.61 after a profit downgrade on Monday.
Also under pressure was finance company Dorchester Pacific, which until April had Bridgecorp as a key shareholder. Dorchester Pacific was down 10c at $1.55, while Marac owner Pyne Gould Corp was down 13c at $4.45.
"I think just one or two investors are a bit nervous about the whole sector ... " Williamson said, noting volume had been light.
Pumpkin Patch fell 6c to a nearly two-year low of $3.20.
- NZPA
