New Zealand share prices closed flat on Thursday, easing off a record high, after early gains prompted by rises on Wall Street were erased by losses in market leader Telecom, dealers said. The benchmark NZSX-50 gross index fell 1.04 points to 3,356.92 on turnover of 189.5 million dollars (128.8 million US). Of 165 stocks traded, 67 finished higher and 58 were lower.
"It's all based on Telcom's turnaround," Goldman Sachs JB Were broker Joe Gallagher said.
Telecom, which accounts for about a quarter of the benchmark index, closed 10 cents lower at 6.27 dollars.
Investors seized on comments from rival TelstraClear's chief executive Alan Freeth at a telecommunications conference in Wellington, hinting the firm could build a third mobile network in New Zealand.
The mobile phone market in New Zealand remains largely dominated by Telecom and British-owned Vodafone NZ.
Gallagher said speculation about TelstraClear's plans for a new mobile network was nothing new but this time it appeared the plans were firmer. A new network "would be fairly damaging for Telecom", leading to a fall in mobile communications prices.
Fletcher Building ended 13 cents higher at a fresh closing high of 7.34 dollars, buoyed by figures showing the number of new dwellings approved in New Zealand rose 12.4 percent in June.
Discount retailer The Warehouse closed 12 cents higher at 3.79 dollars.
Contact Energy was down seven cents at 7.67 dollars, Fisher and Paykel Appliances rose four cents to 3.67 dollars, Sky TV was down four cents at 5.90 and Sky City was up two cents at 4.87.
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