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Wall Street climbed, while US Treasuries fell, as the all-mighty American consumer showed she is confident enough in the outlook to spend more money than anticipated, bolstering expectations the world’s biggest economy is gathering steam. US retail sales excluding automobiles, gasoline, building materials and food services, climbed 0.7 percent in December, following a 0.2 percent advance in November, according to …

The New Zealand dollar held gains in local trading as strong business confidence, increased consumer spending and rising property values fuelled expectations the Reserve Bank will hike interest rates to keep a lid on future inflation threats. The kiwi traded at 83.70 US cents at 5pm in Wellington, little changed from 83.76 cents at 8am, and up from 83.31 cents …

Renaissance Corp ultimately plans to wind itself up once it sells its Yoobee School of Design and deals with its ailing retail business, returning capital to shareholders. The shares jumped 28 percent to 15.4 cents. The company will ask shareholders at a special meeting on Jan. 29 in Auckland to approve the sale of Yoobee to Academic Colleges Group for …

New Zealand property values climbed 10 percent last year due to the shortage of housing in Auckland and Christchurch, though Reserve Bank restrictions on low equity mortgage lending will probably start biting though the first half of this year, according to state-owned valuer Quotable Value. National property values rose 3 percent in the final three months of 2013, and are …

Burger Fuel Worldwide, the NZAX-listed fast food chain franchisor, will raise $5.9 million from a new US investor, Franchise Brands, to help fund its global growth aspirations, including plans to reach into the world’s biggest economy. Milford, Connecticut-based Franchise Brands will buy a 10 percent stake at $1.35 apiece with an option to lift its holding to 50 percent over …

Shares in SLI Systems soared to a six-month high after the online search software developer’s service topped 1 billion search queries in December, the first time it crossed that threshold. The shares rose as high as $2.50, the highest since July last year, and recently traded at $2.45, up 20 percent on the day, after the company said search queries …

New Zealanders lifted retail spending on credit and debit cards last month, adding to signs an accelerating economy is making consumers more confident to open their wallets. Total electronic card transactions at retailers rose 0.6 percent, seasonally adjusted, in December from November and were up 5.5 percent compared to December 2012, according to Statistics New Zealand. Core retailing rose 0.9 …

New Zealand business confidence climbed to a 20-year high in the fourth quarter, lifting expectations for profits, hiring and investments, and raising the prospects for inflation to start to accelerate. A net 52 percent of businesses were optimistic in the December quarter, seasonally adjusted, the highest since June 1994 and up from 33 percent three months earlier, which was itself …

Diligent Board Member Services, the governance software developer, said sales growth slowed in the last three months of 2013, and it has decided to speed up its expansion plans in Europe. The New York-based company added 145 net new clients in the three months ended Dec. 31, compared to 193 a year earlier. It lifted its cash balance US$8.7 million …

The New Zealand dollar rose to its highest level since late November as markets continued to gauge whether last Friday’s weak US employment figures will weigh on the Federal Reserve’s plans to scale back its bond buying programme. The kiwi rose as high as 83.83 US cents, its highest level since Nov. 20, trading at 83.76 cents at 8am in …