Wellington, Dec 11 NZPA - The New Zealand sharemarket started firmly after United States equities rebounded in the last hour of trading after a back-and-forth session.

Leading shares were to the fore early in this country with Telecom up 3c to 241, Fletcher Building up 11c to 576, and Contact Energy up 5c to 690.

Around 10.15am the benchmark NZSX-50 index was up 25.17 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2736.72, after yesterday closing down 13.2 points.

Carpet maker Cavalier Corp's shares were up 30c, or 16 percent, early to 214 on small volume.

Sky TV continued its gains of December, rising 4c to 395 after having been down at 321 early in the month.

Ryman Healthcare was up 3c to 148, and Auckland Airport gained 2c to 168.

US stocks ended higher as a rebound in oil prices and other commodities lifted energy and mining shares, offsetting nervousness over the fate of Washington's bailout for ailing carmakers.

Preliminary closing figures put the Dow Jones industrial average up 0.8 percent, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index up 1.2 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite Index also up 1.2 percent.

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