Michael Hill International, the jewellery chain that bears its founder’s name, said sales in the first nine months of the year rose 8.8 percent on revenue gains in its biggest markets of Australia and New Zealand. Sales climbed to $425 million in the nine months ended March 31, from $390.8 million a year earlier, the Brisbane-based retailer said in a …

Wall Street advanced as investors eyed the results of Alcoa due after the close of the market today to gauge whether the recent weakness in US economic numbers is going to be reflected in corporate profits. Expectations are modest to say the least. S&P 500 companies’ earnings probably rose 1.6 percent from a year ago, according to Thomson Reuters data, …

New Zealand shares fell, nudging the NZX 50 Index down from a record high. Air New Zealand was the biggest decliner while Pumpkin Patch led some retailers lower. Fletcher Building fell as the central bank signaled concern at the overheating housing market. The NZX 50 dropped 35.76 points, or 0.8 percent, to 4397.20. Within the index, 34 stocks fell, nine …

Environmental protests against oil, gas and gold mining have broken out from one end of the country to the other in the last two days. Shell New Zealand closed down a public meeting in Dunedin this morning about its plans to explore in the Great South Basin, offshore Otago and Southland, after a group said to number eight to 10 …

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand would raise interest rates if there were signs that an overheated housing market in Auckland and Christchurch was spilling over into broader inflation pressures and consumer spending, says Deputy Governor Grant Spencer. The nation needs to avoid another housing boom, which “could potentially be more costly than the last, particularly at a time when …

The New Zealand dollar hit a fresh post-float high on a trade-weighted basis as the Bank of Japan’s moves to print massive amounts of money keeps the kiwi well supported, and as Reserve Bank deputy governor Grant Spencer gave the local housing market a serve. The trade-weighted index climbed as high as 77.77, the highest since the currency was floated …

The Treasury forecasts the summer drought will knock 0.7 of a percentage point off annual economic growth, more than twice the 0.2 percent to 0.3 percent forecast by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand in its latest monetary policy statement, on March 14. In commentary accompanying its monthly economic update, the Treasury says the spike in global dairy prices will …

Telecom Corp, the country’s biggest telecommunications company, has set up a new incubator-style unit to come up with new services and products that can leverage the shift to an ultra-fast broadband world. The Auckland-based company has launched a digital ventures team to seek out high potential growth opportunities to deliver new revenue streams and generate bigger returns, it said in …

The New Zealand dollar rose to a five-year high against the yen following the Bank of Japan’s announcement last week of much greater quantitative and qualitative easing to end deflation and weaken its currency. The kiwi rose to 82.61 yen and earlier reached 82.68 yen, the highest since May 2008, from 82.21 yen in New York on Friday. It slipped …

A fresh round of earnings will set the tone for Wall Street after US stocks posted their largest weekly slide of 2013 on mounting evidence the recovery has slowed. A much weaker-than-expected monthly jobs report on Friday capped a week of disappointing data on the American economy which has raised concern about corporate earnings with Alcoa, JP Morgan Chase and …