The New Zealand government kept a smaller operating deficit than forecast in the first nine months of the financial year, even as the cost of the Canterbury earthquakes grew an expected $192 million. The operating balance before gains and losses (obegal) was a deficit of $4.95 billion in the nine months ended March 31, smaller than the $5.22 billion shortfall …

Wall Street kicks off the week at record highs, which might be all that’s needed to underpin investors’ faith in the road ahead. Friday’s US payrolls report not only surpassed expectations about the number of jobs created in April, it also showed upward revisions to the previous two months to the tune of 114,000 extra workers. That went a long …

New Zealand shares fell as Fletcher Building, the biggest company on the NZX 50 Index by market value, left some investors at a Macquarie briefing in Sydney with the impression earnings would be at the low end of guidance. The NZX 50 fell 30.14 points, or 0.7 percent, to 4544.32. Within the index, 22 stocks rose, 19 fell and nine …