Business Desk

Israeli private equity group Fortissimo Capital paid US$8 million for award-winning Wellington-based microwave radio products developer 4RF, allowing the receivers to repay creditors and settle with noteholders. The former parent company, 4RF Communications, was put in receivership in April after failing to reach agreement on restructuring some $5.5 million of convertible notes. To ensure the business, which had $20.4 million …

President of the New Zealand – Canada Business Association and co-founder of Kim Crawford Wines – Erica Crawford, spoke out in favor of TPP calling the agreement a potentially significant one for winemakers. ” New Zealand wine exports to TPP markets are currently nearing $400m, but with TPP we see know reason for that not to double” “TPP will benefit the …

An unnamed bidder for the Harbour City Centre building owned by upscale Wellington retailer Kirkcaldie & Stains has missed a deadline for confirming it was satisfied with due diligence and the agreement could be terminated if an extension isn’t sought. The Harbour City Centre building is valued at $46.55 million, according to the company’s 2012 annual report published last month, …

Glass Earth Gold is raising as much as C$3 million in a private placement in Canada to raise funds to develop its Neavesville and WKP projects in the Hauraki region. The placement follows Glass Earth’s announcement last month that it had gained rights to take over the Neavesville gold and silver prospect from Canadian resource developer Eurasian Minerals. The WKP …

  The New Zealand dollar was little changed against the Australian dollar amid expectations the Reserve Bank of Australia will cut its benchmark interest rate this week while New Zealand’s central bank will keep rates unchanged, narrowing the premium offered across the Tasman. The New Zealand dollar traded at 78.59 Australian cents from 78.65 cents in New York on Friday. …

The agonisingly slow rate of progress in talks to avoid the fiscal cliff in the US with now less than a month to reach an agreement will remain the key focus for investors this holiday season. Progress is difficult to discern, if not absent at this point. Last week President Barack Obama warned of “prolonged negotiations”, while House of Representatives …

Reserve Bank governor Graeme Wheeler will probably keep the official cash rate unchanged at a record low this week because there’s little sign that renewed life in the housing market and Christchurch’s rebuild is stoking inflation yet. Wheeler will leave the OCR unchanged at 2.5 percent on Thursday, according to all 12 economists in a Reuters survey. Looking out over …

Japan’s factory output unexpectedly rose the most since December on production of parts for devices including Apple Inc.’s iPhone, providing a bright spot in an economy poised to shrink for a second straight quarter.

New Zealand building consents fell 1.5 percent in October, snapping four monthly gains, with Canterbury and apartments underpinning new permits and issuance up markedly on the previous year. The number of new dwellings consented fell to a seasonally adjusted 1,519 in October from 1,543 a month earlier, according to Statistics New Zealand. Stripping out apartment issuance, which tends to vary …

Energy Mad, which raised $5 million in an initial public offering last year to kick start sales of its energy-efficient light bulbs, widened its first-half loss after quality control issues in manufacturing a halogen bulb replacement for the Australian market. The shares dropped 8.5 percent. The loss was $500,000 in the six months ended Sept. 30, from a loss of …