The New Zealand sharemarket ignored weakness in other markets to rise today as positive earnings statements flowed.The latest National Bank Business Outlook survey showed confidence at a decade high.The benchmark NZX-50 index closed up 20.804 points, or 0
The New Zealand sharemarket ignored weakness in other markets to rise today as positive earnings statements flowed.
The latest National Bank Business Outlook survey showed confidence at a decade high.
The benchmark NZX-50 index closed up 20.804 points, or 0.7%, at 3151.686. Turnover was worth $94 million, of which $43.8 million was in Telecom shares. There were 47 rises and 31 falls among the 114 stocks traded.
Telecom eased 1c to $2.31 as its under-performing XT network continued to be in the news.
The mood in the market overall was buoyed by the accounts of publicly listed companies filed to NZX today.
Hellaby rose 7c to $1.55 after reporting higher earnings on lower sales, and Nuplex rose 8c to $3.41 after reporting a 481% rise in net profit after tax.
Ebos was unchanged at $5.97 but brokers liked its interim report and said the share price had been firm recently.
"It is a fantastic Christchurch-based company that continues to grow," said Grant Williamson, director at Hamilton Hindin Greene.
Port of Tauranga rose 2c to $7.00 after reporting a little changed interim profit. Lyttelton Port is rarely traded but it highlighted the Fonterra exports it now handles in its result.
Contact Energy rose 25c to $6.14 after reporting a strong profit earlier this week.
PGG Wrightson rose 2c to 60c after reporting interim results and naming Sir John Anderson as chairman.
Tomorrow, Auckland Airport, Air New Zealand, Vector and Pyne Gould Corp and ANZ are among the companies reporting.
Fletcher Building gained 3c to $8.00. Goodman Fielder fell 8c to $1.90 after reporting a 25% rise in first-half profit.
Tower eased 3c to $1.88 and after the market closed announced higher premiums for medical insurance.
Hallenstein Glasson rose 9c to $3.60 and Tourism Holdings, which reported this week, rose 2c to 97c.
Freightways rose 5c to $3.04, Fisher & Paykel Appliances rose 1c to 60c and SkyTV rose 11c to $4.98. Cavalier Carpets rose 5c to $2.65.
The Australian market and some Asian markets were weak today. A reassurance from US Federal Reserve governor Ben Bernanke that US interest rates will stay low lifted US stocks after a two-day slide.
At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.9% at 10,374.16, the Nasdaq was 1% higher at 2235.90 and the broad-market S&P 500 index also added 1% to 1105.22.
