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New Zealand posted its first trade deficit for a June month in six years as imports rose more than expected. Statistics New Zealand said the country had a trade deficit of $60 million in June, its first deficit for the month since 2009, and contrary to economist expectations in a Reuters poll for a $100 million surplus. It compares with …

The government doesn’t want to spend any more money or stay any longer in the build of New Zealand’s ultra-fast broadband network for fear it might “stuff it”, says Finance Minister Bill English. The government wants to extend the UFB programme to 80 percent of the nation’s population from its original 75 percent target and has also expressed a desire to …

By Suze Metherell July 23 (BusinessDesk) – Light regulation in the New Zealand dairy industry has insulated the wider economy from the sharp decline in prices for the country’s largest export commodity, according to minister of finance Bill English. Prices for whole milk powder, the country’s key commodity export, have plunged this year and dropped an unexpectedly large 10.7 percent …

Reserve Bank governor Graeme Wheeler cut the official cash rate a quarter-point to 3 percent and flagged more reductions are likely, while saying a lower kiwi dollar is needed to prop up the nation’s export sector. The New Zealand dollar jumped higher. “A reduction in the OCR is warranted by the softening in the economic outlook and low inflation,” Wheeler said in …

By Fiona Rotherham July 22 (BusinessDesk) –  Al Monro has been appointed to the board of government-funded business innovation agency Callaghan Innovation, replacing Sir Peter Maire who’s stepping down after two years to focus on his business interests. Callaghan Innovation was set up in 2013 to support kiwi businesses in science and technology-based commercialisation. Board chair Sue Suckling said Maire, …

New Zealand’s banks are in a good position and should be able to withstand pressure on the agricultural sector from weaker dairy prices, according to ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service. The credit ratings agency is in the process of updating its New Zealand Banking System Outlook annual report, which will include a slight moderation in economic growth to reflect the …

Federated Farmers president William Rolleston says progress made in the last few years on farming’s environmental impact can’t be sustained when farmers are making a loss. Speaking to the Local Government New Zealand conference today, Rolleston says if agriculture is to continue its contribution to New Zealand’s economy, it has to address the issues of productivity and environmental impact. A …

The New Zealand Venture Investment Fund, the Crown-funded start-up investor, has taken its 7.1 percent stake in ikeGPS inhouse, after Number 8 Ventures opted to distribute the shares at the end of the remote measurement tool maker’s lock-up period. The fund owns 3.5 million of the 50.1 million ikeGPS shares on issue, worth about $2.28 million at today’s price of 65 …

Disgruntled Alliance Group shareholders have gathered sufficient support to force a special meeting to discuss the potential benefits and risks of a merger with fellow cooperative Silver Fern Farms. Balfour farmer Jeff Grant, who along with rural accountant and farmer, Gaye Cowie, have been gathering the required 5 percent of proxy forms needed to force the special meeting, say they …

The New Zealand dollar rose as high as 66 US cents overnight after Prime Minister John Key told reporters at his weekly post-Cabinet press conference that the local currency had fallen faster than expected. The kiwi was trading at 65.67 US cents at 8am in Wellington, from 65.61 cents at 5pm yesterday and 65.12 cents immediately before the 4pm press conference. …