Investors will eye February’s jobs report on Friday for fresh signs that the US economic recovery remains on track despite a range of headwinds – including the budget-cut debate in Washington and the political impasse in Rome. Wall Street keeps flirting with record highs but investors seem hesitant to push stock valuations substantially higher. In the past week, the Dow …

  My assessment of the meeting is that the business leaders from Japan were very supportive of TPP in principle as a means of boosting Japan’s economic growth, but are aware of the practical challenges around joining this year. They were realistic about the political challenges that PM Abe faces from domestic interests such as agriculture but were generally optimistic …

Local Government Minister Chris Tremain says the passage of the Environment Canterbury (Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management) Amendment Bill will leave Canterbury better off. The bill passed its third reading in Parliament yesterday. “The Commissioners have done an outstanding job in turning around the situation in Canterbury over the last three years,” saysTremain. “They have been very effective in …