THE MARKET Goliath loses ground

Press, 29 January 1986, Page 35

THE MARKET Goliath loses ground

Goliath lost 3c to close at 7c on a quiet, easier New Zealand sharemarket yesterday, having announced on Monday that it had stopped gold mining after heavy losses. The West Coast miner traded between 6c and lie in moderately active trading, and the closing quotation on the Christchurch Invercargill Stock Exchange was buy 6c, no sellers.

The Barclays industrial index fell 4.73 points to close at 1880.90, but the wider-based Reserve Bank Industrial index as marginally up four points to 6829. Falls outnumbered rises 61 to 49.

Mr Tony NorbertMunns, the operating partner for Egden, Wignail and Company, the Christchurch broker, said that the market appeared to be weakening on a

lower turnover, and that it would continue this pattern until next week.

Several issues rose sharply, going against the weak trend, including Equiticorp, Mace, and Robt Jones Investments. These issues had fallen under selling pressure recently, he said. Brierley Investments continued to ease throughout the day. The leading investment issue was down 5c in the morning call and lost a further 5c in the afternoon session to close at its low for the day of 690 c. Chase Corporation was also knocked back, losing 7c to 568 c. However, Equiticorp rose 7c and Robt Jones 15c.

The leading industrials were mixed. ANZ Banking Group, Goodman and NZI Corporation all eased, but Carter Holt, Dominion Breweries, and Fletcher Challenge went against the trend. Feltex firmed 2c to 282 after news that Equiticorp had permission to take up to 59 per cent of the com-

pany, and A. M. Bisley, a second-line company that is the subject of a takeover by Equiticorp, lost 15c to 160.

Newspaper issues were in demand as both Wilson and Horton and NZ News gained 15c. Otago Press and Produce rose 9c, but the Christchurch Press Company and Independent Newspapers were unchanged. Thoroughbred issues were again mixed, and National Bloodstock, the standardbred issue, lost 15c of its recent gains. Other movements among second-liners included Colonial Motor down 10c to 300, and Autocrat Sanyo up 20c to 100. Ebos Dental and Surgical Supplies, the sel-dom-traded Christchurch company, was ahead 5c ex dividend, and Mace jumped 10c.

CORRECTION: The offer by Orange Peel Investments for Dingwall and Paulger is still 310 c a share, not 325 c as reproted in this column yesterday.