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The cancellation of a two day strike at the Marsden Point oil refinery next week has left the country’s four main oil companies with an unwanted 50 million litre emergency shipment of aviation fuel that set sail from South Korea at the weekend. Z Energy, BP, Mobil and Chevron (owner of the Caltex brand), acting in concert as the Customer Supply Group, sourced …

New Zealand shares rose as a weaker kiwi dollar attracted investors to stocks with currency exposure such as Fletcher Building and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare. Meridian Energy extended its fall from a record. The NZX 50 Index increased 6.019 points, or 0.1 percent, to 5259.507. Within the index, 22 stocks rose, 19 fell and nine were unchanged. Turnover was a lighter-than-usual $80.7 million. The kiwi …

New Zealand shares fell, as the NZX 50 Index dropped from a record in a global sell off as investors took the opportunity to crystallise the bourse’s gains. Meridian Energy snapped six days of gains as it shed rights to its dividend. Spark New Zealand and Fletcher Building paced the decline. The NZX 50 Index fell 24.373 points, or 0.5 percent, to …

The New Zealand dollar is heading for a 2.8 percent slide against the greenback this week after Reserve Bank governor Graeme Wheeler jawboned down the kiwi and Fonterra Cooperative Group cut its forecast payout to farmers, as global investors start eyeing higher interest rates in the US. The kiwi fell to 78.98 US cents at 5pm in Wellington from 81.24 cents …

Pumpkin Patch, the second-worst performing stock on the NZX All Index the past 12 months, turned to a loss in 2014 and signalled earnings are unlikely to improve for another year. The Auckland-based children’s clothing chain posted a loss of $10.2 million, or 6 cents a share, in the 12 months ended July 31, from a profit of $5.1 million, or …

Burger Fuel Worldwide, the NZAX-listed fast food chain franchisor, plans to bring its franchise stores in-house which it expects will deliver greater profitability, and has bought the Henderson, Auckland store for an undisclosed sum. The Auckland-based fast food chain is targeting at least a 20 percent return on investment from its company-owned stores, and is considering opening its own restaurants in selected …

Port of Taranaki lifted annual profit 57 percent after it reported record revenue servicing the offshore oil and gas exploration industry. Profit rose to $11.7 million in the 12 months ended June 30, from $7.5 million a year earlier, the New Plymouth-based port said in its annual report. Sales rose 23 percent to $55.2 million, the highest ever for the …

Environmental lobbyists criticised plans by Chatham Rock Phosphate to mitigate the impact of its proposal to mine phosphate nodules from the Chatham rise seabed, saying it wouldn’t diminish the risk and uncertainty of the project, and that any economic benefit didn’t trump environmental concerns. Speaking on the second day of a two-month hearing on Chatham Rock’s marine consent application, the …

Pledge Me, the online crowd funding platform, has launched its first two equity offers, giving investors the chance to buy into New Zealand’s first computer museum, backed by Apple Inc co-founder Steve Wozniak, and a hovercraft ferry in the South Island. The Wellington-based crowd funder is licensed under the new Financial Markets Conduct Act, which came into effect on April 1, providing …

Wellington visitor management software firm WhosonLocation is looking to raise up to $3 million in private equity as it seeks the next phase of growth since it launched five years ago. Founder Darren Whitaker-Barnett told BusinessDesk the company, which operates in nine countries and boasts 61,000 users globally, is seeking high net worth individuals rather than an initial public offering, …