SHAREMARKET Dull, featureless, narrow trading

Press, 22 June 1989, Page 29

SHAREMARKET Dull, featureless, narrow trading

The New Zealand sharemarket edged up a little yesterday in dull and featureless trading, over a very narrow range.

The market opened light and slipped a bit in the morning session, but picked up after the lunchbreak, without getting anywhere fast. Quite a number of issues were not traded, and about 80% of trading was in only four or five stocks.

The Barclays index of industrial shares firmed 3.41 points to 1935.76, while the NZSE gross index closed 0.74 higher at 728.74. Only 7.7 million shares changed hands, for $ll million. There were almost twice as many rises as falls. Brierley Investments accounted for more than one third of the day’s volume. It recovered some of its lost ground but still closed easier for the day, at 177, down Ic. Overseas buyers showed interest in Carter Holt Harvey and Robt Jones Investments, with last sales at 265 and 105, both 1c dearer. Wilson and Horton had one of the best

rises, to 693, up 10c on the stock’s last sale. INL was also firmer, up 2c to 407.

Newspaper publisher, Wilson and Horton, firmed on continued speculation that Australia’s Robert Holmes a Court wanted to increase his stake in the company, brokers said. The sharp rise was on volume of less than 10,000 shares.

Leading stocks had a mixed day, with Fletcher Challenge firming 2c to 482 (190,394) and Goodman Fielder Wattie also up 2c to 288 (155,227). Goodman Fielder Wattie firmed 2c to 288 on the announcement that it had completed its purchase of 14.9 per cent of Brierley Investments’ Australian subsidiary Industrial Equity, Ltd. Brierley had been sold down in Australia overnight on rumourmongering that the Goodman-lEL deal would not be settled today. Magnum Corp closed unchanged at 305 after the announcement that it had sold the New Zealand franchise for Pepsico brand products back to Pepsi’s Ameri-

can parent company. Market observers said Magnum had been losing about $5 million a year on Pepsi, because of stiff competition from Coca Cola.

Magnum’s price had also steadied after its purchase on Tuesday of Wilson Neill’s New Zealand liquor outlets, they said.

The purchase gives Magnum and LionNathan an almost equal share of the New Zealand retail liquor market.

Lion Nathan slipped 1c to 312 yesterday while Wilson Neill was 2c easier at 73, suffering from the decision to discard a core business.

Banking stocks were firmer on balance. Countrywide at 245 and ANZ at 630 put on 5c each, while BNZ was unchanged and Capital Markets edged up 1c to 152.

Ernest Adams had the biggest rise of the day —23 c to 280.

Elsewiiere among the rises were noted Smiths City Group, 1c to 51, LWR Industries, 2c to 148, and Firestone, 5c to 295.