The New Zealand may gain with more Chinese economic data coming later today and amid expectations Fonterra Cooperative Group will announce a hike in its forecast payout to farmers tomorrow. The kiwi traded at 82.90 US cents at 5pm in Wellington from 82.70 cents at 8am and 82.91 cents yesterday. The trade-weighted index was 77.78 from 77.83 yesterday. Traders are …

The Financial Markets Authority says there's a big difference in quality between audit reports by the 'big four' accounting firms and their lower tier rivals, who will need to step up their game significantly to meet regulations overseeing the sector. The market watchdog's first audit quality review report since the regulations came into play last year found “the majority of …

Units of Fonterra Shareholders’ Fund were cut to ‘sell’ from ‘hold’ by brokerage Craigs Investment Partners because of the ongoing squeeze of rising raw material costs and weaker prices for value-added products such as casein and cheese. Fonterra’s 2014 normalised earnings before interest and tax may fall 24 percent to $764 million, Craigs analyst Arie Dekker said in a report. …