26 Jun 2009

NZ market down slightly at close

8:40 pm on 26 June 2009

The New Zealand market was marginally down at the close of trade on Friday.

The benchmark index was 0.039 points, or 0.001%, lower to 2770 on turnover of $70 million.

Top stocks were mixed. Telecom was down 2c to $2.65, while Contact Energy fell 6c to $5.65. Air New Zealand was up 1c to 92c, while and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare rose 3c to $2.96

The Australian share market closed higher after a positive lead from United States markets, with the financial sector showing strength.

At the 1615 AEST close, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index had risen 47.8 points, or 1.24%, to 3903.8 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index lifted 48 points, or 1.25%, to 3899.5 points.

Japanese share prices closed up 0.83%, tracking gains on Wall Street after figures showed the US economy shrank slightly less than initially thought in the first quarter.

The benchmark Nikkei-225 index rose 81.31 points to end at 9,877.39. The broader Topix index of all first section shares added 7.03 points, or 0.76%, to 926.80.