Wall Street rallied for a second day as stronger-than-expected reports on US business spending and the housing market bolstered optimism about the sustainability of the economic recovery. In afternoon trading in New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.94 percent, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 1.09 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 1.14 percent. Orders for …

TeamTalk, which bought the rural telecommunications provider Farmside last year, has cut its annual earnings guidance, blaming the downgrade on the government-imposed levy to pay for servicing unprofitable customers in remote areas. The Wellington-based company made a net profit of $1.7 million, or 7.2 cents per share, in the six months ended Dec. 31, from $5.4 million, or 23.3 cents, …

The government will be racing the clock to try and sell up to 49 percent of state-owned electricity company MightyRiverPower now that the Supreme Court has dismissed attempts by Maori claimants to settle Treaty of Waitangi claims to freshwater rights first. The unanimous decision of the five judge full bench of the Supreme Court clears the last legal hurdle to …