Slide in share prices

Press, 29 July 1986, Page 1

Slide in share prices

A wildly fluctuating Australian dollar caused a slide in New Zealand share prices and a sharp fall in the Kiwi dollar yesterday. Heavy selling overseas, especially in Japan, pushed the Australian dollar down almost 3 U.S. cents to a record low during the day, but it rose after the Reserve Bank and the Federal Government stepped in with an-

nouncements of incentives to investors. The Australian dollar then bounced back, rising to almost 2 U.S. cents above the Friday close, before ending about 61.50 U.S. cents, still about half a cent above last week’s close. Its range for the day was more than 9 U.S. cents — almost 15 per cent on the opening price.

The New Zealand currency closed at 51.7 U.S.

cents, compared with the Friday close of about 53.23 and its opening yesterday of 52. This is a fall of 1.5 c since Friday, about 2.8 per cent. Against the yen, the Kiwi dollar reached a low of 80.60.

The ripples washed on to the sharemarket. The Barclay’s industrial index, the main measure for non-mining shares, fell 71.8 points in the day,

with six falls for every five rises. Last week, the market rose 48.82 points. Yesterday’s fall represented a 2.6 per cent drop in the prices of shares in the index.

In the futures market, American dollar futures

jumped sharply, and commodity contracts (wool and wheat) firmed.

Details, page 22.