New Zealand stocks up 3.4 percent at the open

New Zealand stocks opened up 3.4 percent Wednesday, bouncing back from heavy losses in the wake of the US credit downgrade. The benchmark NZX 50, the first market to open in the Asia-Pacific, was up 104.05 points at 3,201.83 at 10:05am (2205 Tuesday GMT). Forsyth Barr broker Suzanne Kinnaird said she expected markets across Asia to rise after Wall Street rebounded Tuesday on a US Federal Reserve announcement that it expected to maintain low interest rates for the next two years. "Obviously, those that were hit the hardest in the last couple of days are likely to rebound," Kinnaird told Dow Jones Newswires shortly before the market opened.