Profit-taking pulls shares lower

The S&P/NZX 50 Index fell 63.75 points, or 0.5 percent, to 11,748.03. Within the index, 24 stocks fell, 20 rose and six were unchanged. Turnover was $154 million.

After a one-day reprieve, Wall Street resumed its selloff overnight giving another negative lead to Asian markets.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.6 percent in late trading, mainland Chinese bourses were off 0.2 percent each, while Kong Hong’s Hang Seng rose 0.6 percent.

United States equity indices dropped between 1 and 2 percent Thursday night as high valuations struck a discordant note with weak economic data.