The New Zealand sharemarket rose today with Contact Energy and Mainfreight the standout performers.Shares in healthcare investor and operator Abano fell 10c to $5.30 after the company said it was expecting second half earnings to be softer than planned.Th
The New Zealand sharemarket rose today with Contact Energy and Mainfreight the standout performers.
Shares in healthcare investor and operator Abano fell 10c to $5.30 after the company said it was expecting second half earnings to be softer than planned.
The NZX-50 index rose 18.345 points, or 0.6%, to finish the March quarter at 3267.993, reversing a weak opening.
Turnover was worth $105.8 million, of which $22.3 million was in Telecom shares. There were 41 rises and 30 falls among the 117 stocks traded.
Australian shares slipped on weaker than expected retail sales data, while Asian markets were mixed on concerns stock may be becoming overvalued.
Mainfreight rose 9c to $6.34 on a day in which the government said trucks would be permitted to carry up to 53 tonnes from May 1. The current limit is 44 tonnes.
"People are getting more comfortable that the recovery is taking place and Mainfreight will be a direct beneficiary of that," said James Lee, head of wholesale equities at First NZ Capital.
Contact Energy rose 22c to $6.40. Brokers said it was difficult to read anything into today's quiet market at month-end and ahead of a holiday weekend.
Telecom was up 1c at $2.17 and Fletcher Building was unchanged at $8.35. SkyCity rose 2c to $3.22 on a day in which Standard & Poor's raised the outlook on its credit rating.
Hellaby fell 4c to $1.61 and The Warehouse fell 3c to $3.75.
NZ Refining rose 4c to $3.99, SkyTV rose 2c to $5.34 and Michael Hill rose 2c to 70c.
Goodman Property Trust fell 1c to $1.00 after saying its property portfolio shed $28.4 million in the six months ended March 31.
Sealegs fell 2c to 19c and Blis Technologies fell 0.8c to 9.7c. South Port rose 30c to $2.85 and Rubicon rose 4c to 94c. Renaissance Corp rose 2c to 28c.
