Markets in the United States were closed on Monday for Martin Luther King Jnr Day.
But European markets were up. The FTSE100 in London rose 0.4%, the DAX in Frankfurt rose 1.25% and the CAC40 in Paris rose 0.9%.
The Australian 200 Index fell 49 points, or 1.2%, to close at 4147 on Monday and the NZX 50 fell 17 points, to finish at 3211.
At 8.10am on Tuesday, the New Zealand dollar was trading at 79.45 US cents, 77.05 Australian cents, 51.87 pence, 61.05 yen and 0.6275 euro. The Trade Weighted Index was at 71.19.
Brent crude oil was trading at $US111.30 per barrel and gold was trading at $US1643 per ounce.
