The foreign owners of the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter have had discussions with Finance Minister Bill English about further sweeteners to keep the New Zealand’s most energy-intensive industrial plant open and been told there is no scope for further assistance, says Prime Minister John Key. The smelter’s majority owner, Anglo-Australian metals giant Rio Tinto, wrung $30 million in cash out of …

The New Zealand dollar may advance this week as the Reserve Bank disappoints some traders positioned for an aggressive interest rate cut of 50 basis points by limiting its reduction to a quarter-point. The kiwi may trade between 63.50 US cents and 67.05 cents, according to a BusinessDesk survey of 11 currency advisers. Six expect the kiwi to gain, four …

New Zealand’s services sector, which accounts for about two-thirds of the economy, was at its most buoyant level in 11 months in June. The BNZ-BusinessNZ performance of services index rose 0.1 point to a seasonally adjusted 58.2 last month, its highest level since July 2014, and extending a run of continuous expansion since October 2009. All of the five sub-indices …