Japanese drinks giant Asahi has filed papers in the Federal Court of Australia in Melbourne over the $1.5 billion price tag on its Independent Liquor purchase from private equity firms Pacific Equity Partners and Unitas Capital. Asahi Holdings (Australia) and Independent Liquor (NZ) today filed an originating application in the court, alleging the private equity firms made false representations about …

New Zealand food prices rose for the first time in five months in January, led by fruit, vegetables and grocery items such as biscuits, yoghurt and bread. The food price index climbed 1.9 percent in January, following a 0.2 percent decline in December, according to Statistics New Zealand. All five categories of food measured rose in the latest month. Fruit …

New Zealand manufacturing grew at the fastest pace in eight months in January, with the strongest growth in Canterbury/Westland probably reflecting demand for building materials, but employment in the sector is shrinking. The BNZ-Business New Zealand Performance of Manufacturing Index climbed 4.8 points to 55.2 last month, the highest since May last year and the highest for the month of …