NZ sharemarket lifts 17 points with retail sales data

The New Zealand sharemarket rose sharply on encouraging retail sales data today.

The benchmark NZX 50 index rose 17 points as retail sales figures in the US allayed fears over the economy there -- and US stocks posted their biggest gains in nearly two months -- and similar New Zealand data was better than expected.

Though many analysts said the US rally was likely a one-day wonder -- based on the fact that retail sales data was weak but not as bad as widely expected -- investors in that market saw an excuse to buy shares.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 1 percent to 12,076.11, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 1.3 percent to 1287.87, and the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 1.5 percent to 2678.72.

On this side of the Tasman, the NZX 50 index lifted -- for the second day in a row -- by 17.517 points (0.502 percent) to 3506.371 after local retail sales volumes rose more than expected in the first quarter.

The NZX 50 was already up nine points on the encouraging news from the US, and lifted to an intraday high of 3520 points as analysts viewed the domestic retail data as showing resilience in the economy in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake.

NZ sales volumes, rose a seasonally adjusted 0.9 percent in the three months to March 31, against expectations for a rise of 0.5 percent -- the first rise in three quarters and the strongest rise in more than a year.

The New Zealand dollar also briefly spiked above US82c.

The latest retail data showed solid buying of electronics, vehicles and furniture, but supermarket and fuel sales fell.

A total of 61 million shares were traded on the NZX, valued at $145.3m. There were 43 rises and 37 falls among the 115 stocks trades.

Children's clothing retailer Pumpkin Patch dropped 1c to finish at $1.09 -- though some trades took place earlier in the session at prices down 10c, which represented a 27-month low -- after it lowered its profit forecast by up to a quarter. Changes announced by the company included closure of its 20 US stores.

Fund manager Tower fell to 9c to $1.61, after shedding its 4c dividend. Tower recently reported a 54 percent fall in half year profit, hit by costs from earlier Christchurch tremors. 
Fletcher Building rose 1c to 867, Sanford lifted 4c to 525, NZX gained 3c to 244, Freightways was up 13c to 346, and Contact Energy was up 2c to 579.

Cornerstone stock Telecom lifted 6c to 243.5, on top of a 10.5c lift yesterday as shareholders' hopes that the company may be able to be split later this year rose after law changes to enable the ultrafast broadband project made progress in Parliament.

Pyne Gould Corp lifted 2c to 39c after it agreed to help fund Heartland New Zealand's bid to expand its rural lending business.

Kathmandu Holdings rose 1c to 220 after it today opened three new stores in Australia and one in New Zealand.

The Australian sharemarket fell today as jumpy investors ignored a positive overnight lead to post broad-based declines in the financial, materials, energy and consumer sectors.

At the close, the benchmark ASX200 index was down 18.2 points, or 0.4 per cent, at 4566.8, while the broader All Ordinaries index was 15.7 points, or 0.3 per cent, lower at 4635.4.

Among the sectors, energy fell 0.7 per cent, while financials and materials both dropped 0.4 per cent. Property trusts bucked the trend, rising 0.6 per cent.