ANZ Bank announced an assistance package to help drought-affected farmers get through the Big Dry.  Parts of Northland have had their driest February since records began. This week the Government declared a state of drought in Northland, and Federated Farmers expects other regions to follow soon. “As with any serious weather event that impacts on dairy and meat production, the …

New Zealand’s terms of trade unexpectedly fell to a three-year low in the fourth quarter as prices of dairy exports extended their slide and fish export prices fell. The terms of trade fell 1.3 percent in the fourth quarter from three months earlier, according to Statistics New Zealand. A 1.3 percent gain was expected, based on a Reuters survey. The …

Postie Plus Group, which last year avoided breaching its banking covenants, is in talks with its banks again after posting a wider first-half on dwindling sales and thinner margins and bracing for an annual loss. The shares tumbled. The Auckland-based company made a pretax loss from continuing operations of $2.56 million in six months ended Feb. 3, compared to a …