By Sophie BootNew Zealand shares dropped, following regional markets lower, with Xero and Summerset Group Holdings declining while Air New Zealand and Mainfreight gained. The S&P/NZX 50 Index fell 16.78 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 7,107.45. Within the index, 24 stocks fell, 15 rose and 11 were unchanged. Asian markets followed Wall Street's drop overnight after the US earnings season began with disappointing results. In afternoon trading, Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down 1.1 per cent, Japan's Nikkei 225 had dropped 0.9 per cent and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.4 per cent.

Source: New Zealand Herald October 12, 2016 05:03 UTC