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Shares of Melbourne based mining group OceanaGold has risen 9.7 percent in early NZX trading after announcing its gold production exceeded expectations in 2013. The company produced 325,732 ounces of gold across its New Zealand and Philippines operations, slightly ahead the top of the range it had forecast of 285,000 to 325,000 ounces. It says its 2013 final quarter was …

Dairy product prices rose at the latest GlobalDairyTrade auction, led by surging prices for butter and cheese, two products which have posed problems for Fonterra Cooperative Group as their prices lagged whole milk powder. The GDT Price Index increased 1.4 percent from the last sale on Jan 8. The average winning price was US$5,025 per tonne from US$4,953 a tonne …

The New Zealand dollar held yesterday’s gains after a surprise rise in December inflation heightened expectations the Reserve Bank might hike interest rates as early as next week and as the latest Fonterra Cooperative Group dairy auction showed an increase in prices. The kiwi traded at 83.09 US cents at 8am from 83.21 cents yesterday, holding on to most of …

After a long weekend, Wall Street returned with a sombre mood as the earnings outlook from companies including Johnson & Johnson and Verizon failed to justify current valuations. Shares of Johnson & Johnson dropped, last 2 percent weaker, after its earnings outlook fell short of expectations. The outlook reflects “some level of conservatism-in line with historical guidance-given still seemingly weak …

New Zealand shares rose to a two-month high, led by retailer Hallenstein Glasson, extending its rally from a four-year low as investors went bargain hunting. The NZX 50 Index advanced 31.175 points, or about 0.6 percent, to 4921.671, the highest close since Nov. 14. Within the index, 31 stocks rose, 12 fell and seven were unchanged. Turnover was $75 million. …

New Zealand inflation unexpectedly edged higher in the final three months of 2013, led by more expensive airfares, housing and dairy prices. The consumers price index increased 0.1 percent in the three months ended Dec. 31, slowing from a quarterly increase of 0.9 percent, according to Statistics New Zealand. That was against a forecast decline of 0.1 percent in a …

New Zealand stock market was mixed, as the Wellington Anniversary holiday thinned out trading, as Hallenstein Glasson rebounded and Tower slipped after shedding rights to its February dividend. The NZX 50 Index fell 3.451 points, or about 0.07percent, to 4890.496. Within the index, 16 fell, 25 stocks rose and nine were unchanged. Turnover was a lighter-than-usual $66.8 million with fewer …

Auckland house prices remained “severely unaffordable” for the 10th year in a row in the American survey, Demographia, which compares housing costs in nine mainly English-speaking countries. Produced by Wendell Cox, an Illinois-based opponent of urban planning and proponent of private cars over public transport and Christchurch-based urban planner Hugh Pavletich, the Demographia report contends that restrictive urban planning is …

The New Zealand dollar looks likely to fall this week as investors consider how local inflation and housing figures will feed into the Reserve Bank’s interest rate outlook, ahead of next week’s policy review. The local currency may trade between 81.20 US cents and 84.20 cents this week, according to a BusinessDesk survey of six traders and strategists. Four predict …

New Zealand confidence rose in the final quarter of 2013 to its second highest reading in the last two years, but optimism about wage growth slumped to its lowest in 18 months. The Westpac McDermott Milller Employment Confidence Index rose to 103.4 in the fourth quarter from 102.8 from the prior quarter, in the scale where 100 separates optimists from …