SHAREMARKET Back on up trend

Press, 16 August 1989, Page 44

SHAREMARKET Back on up trend

The New Zealand sharemarket firmed yesterday, investors interpreting the cur-rent-account surplus as further evidence that the economic recovery is under way.

The Barclays industrial index rose 20.96 points to 2222.92. By noon it had risen only the equivalent of one point. Rises outnumbered falls better than four to three, on quite sizeable volume: 15.488 million shares traded worth a total of $40.2 million. In the morning, trading was quite light, though the Stock Exchange’s gross index rose 1.42 points to 839.6 before climbing to 846.20 in the afternoon. Mr Patrick Lee, of United Sharebrokers, said trading opened on a very steady note in the morning, but prices improved in the afternoon session, erasing Monday’s losses. “In particular, Brierley Investments, Fletcher Challenge, and Goodman Fielder Wattle were sought after in the afternoon, while Lion Nathan came in for profit-taking after its recent strong run-up.” Mr Lee said the record quarterly balance-of-payments surplus should reinforce the new confidence of the market, but the direction of the market might be affected by last night’s Australian Budget.

Stocks listed in both Australia and New Zealand led the rise yesterday. Brierley Investments led, closing 8c up at 231. It is now up 36c, or 18%, this month, and 60c, or 35%, since the beginning of July. More than 3.15 M Brierley shares traded in New Zealand

during the day. Carter Holt Harvey, the forestry group, was the second most heavily traded issue of the day, with a turnover of 2.5 M shares, it rose 4c to 300. This brings the Carter Holt rise this month to 41c, 15.8%. It has risen 50c, or 20%, since going ex-dividend four weeks ago. Fletcher Challenge jumped 8c to 517, which is 62c, or 13.6% up, this month and its highest since March. Turnover of Fletcher shares was 1.49 M. Lion Nathan eased 9c to 420, but it is still 60c, or 16.6% above its price at the beginning of this month. Wilson and Horton, the newspaper publisher, eased 5c to 790, again on heavy turnover. It is still 63c, or 8.6%, above its price at the beginning of August, and 235 c, or 42%, above its price at the beginning of the year. Overnight, Wall Street had opened its week of trading with a pause after the boom of last week. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 6.07 points to 2677.92. On Friday it peaked above the all-time high of 2722.42 in August, 1987, but closed with a fall of 28.64 points on the Thursday close to 2683.99. The Australian market was down yesterday ahead of last night’s Federal Budget, but rose in the afternoon and finished only 2.1 points lower on the allordinaries index’s Monday close.

In Tokyo yesterday, the sharemarket rallied. It ended a three-day falling streak by climbing 139.07 points, or 0.40%, to close at 34,810.9 on the Nikkei index.