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BusinessDesk - Latest News [Page 1209]

NZ dollar little changed amid drought fears

Thursday, 28 February 2013, 8:57 am | BusinessDesk

Feb. 28 (BusinessDesk) – The New Zealand dollar was little changed as traders pondered the impact of drought on the dairy industry, the nation’s biggest exporter, offsetting the risk-on tone from US stocks near record highs. More >>

While you were sleeping: Wall Street extends rise

Thursday, 28 February 2013, 7:45 am | BusinessDesk

Feb 28 (BusinessDesk) – Wall Street rallied for a second day as stronger-than-expected reports on US business spending and the housing market bolstered optimism about the sustainability of the economic recovery. More >>

MARKET CLOSE: NZ shares rally; NZX gains on IPO prospects

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 5:55 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) – New Zealand shares rose, pushing the NZX 50 Index to a new five-year high, as a court ruling allowing the sale of MightyRiverPower stoked optimism for new NZX listings. More >>

NZ dollar holds below 83 US cts on Italian poll uncertainty

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 5:20 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) - The New Zealand dollar held below 83 US cents in local trading as the uncertain election outcome in Italy dented investors' appetite for riskier, or higher-yielding, assets, and trumped an unchanged outlook for this season's payout ... More >>

NZ Refining FY earnings hold up, full strategic review looms

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 4:45 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb 27 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand refining, the nation’s only oil refinery, made a tax-paid profit of $32.6 million in the year to Dec. 31, down 5 percent on the previous year, with volatile refining margins improving towards the end of the year, ... More >>

TeamTalk bemoans subsidy to rivals, cuts annual guidance

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 4:05 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) - TeamTalk, which bought the rural telecommunications provider Farmside last year, has cut its annual earnings guidance, blaming the downgrade on the government-imposed levy to pay for servicing unprofitable customers in remote ... More >>

Supreme Court decision opens way for privatisations

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 3:59 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) - The government will be racing the clock to try and sell up to 49 percent of state-owned electricity company MightyRiverPower now that the Supreme Court has dismissed attempts by Maori claimants to settle Treaty of Waitangi ... More >>

Fonterra’s bonus share issue, flexi contracts ease pressure

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 3:25 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) - Fonterra Cooperative Group farmers will get some breathing space in being fully ‘shared up’ after the world's biggest dairy exporter announced a bonus issue of stock and offered more flexibility for those growing milk production. More >>

SNAP: Supreme Court dismisses Maori Council appeal

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 3:16 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) - The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal by the New Zealand Maori Council to block the MightyRiverPower partial privatisation. More >>

CORRECT: A2 first-half profit dented by UK joint venture

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 2:18 pm | BusinessDesk

CORRECT: A2 first-half profit dented by UK joint venture, affirms annual earnings target of $11.2M More >>

MightyRiverPower raises $100M in wholesale bond issue

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 1:51 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) - MightyRiverPower, the first state-owned enterprise slated for a partial sale this quarter, has raised $100 million from institutional investors in two wholesale bond issues to repay debt. More >>

New tools for central bank by mid-2013, says English

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 1:23 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) - The Reserve Bank will get an expanded range of tools to shore up financial stability, including the ability to set loan-to-value ratios on residential mortgages and force banks to hold more capital against risky lending, ... More >>

MIDDAY UPDATE: Fonterra sees no change in farmer payouts

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 12:31 pm | BusinessDesk

Feb.27 (BusinessDesk) - Dairy exporter Fonterra Cooperative Group sees no change in its forecast payout for farmers this season, though it wants more milk supply and will tinker with its share base to facilitate that. More >>

NZ posts January trade deficit as exports fall, led by dairy

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 11:55 am | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) – New Zealand recorded a trade deficit in January, reflecting a larger-than-expected decline in exports led by dairy products, while imports rose. More >>

NZ visitors fall on drop in Chinese, more Americans

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 11:54 am | BusinessDesk

More Americans on cruise ships fail to arrest fall in short-term arrivals in January More >>

Govt tips $60M into NZVIF to encourage private investors

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 11:10 am | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) – The government is backing the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund with a further $60 million as part of its efforts to encourage more private investment. More >>

A2 1H profit dented by UK JV, affirms FY earnings target

Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 11:01 am | BusinessDesk

Feb. 27 (BusinessDesk) - A2 Corp, which markets milk products with a protein variant claimed to have health benefits, reported an 82 percent slide in first-half profit as the cost of setting up its UK joint venture eroded the bottom line. The shares ... More >>