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Broadcaster, Brian Edwards, and Listener columnist, Bill Ralston, talk to Whale Oil blogger, Cameron Slater, about his new role as editor of Truth.

BACK TO WORK AFTER HURRICANE SANDY . At least 40 deaths have been confirmed, with millions of lives disrupted from power outages, flooded subways and transit systems. Preliminary estimates place the total loss from the hurricane at between US $30bn-$50bn, which pales into comparison with the US$140bn+ cost from Hurricane Katrina. With the storm now forecast to weaken, life is slowly …

John Key will take the political temperature of the administration in 2013. Prime Minister John Key will now have to wait until 2013 to take the political temperature of the new Chinese Administration. The Key Government this week finally postponed plans to celebrate the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between New Zealand and China until next year. This is no …

GLOBAL MARKETS: US bond and equity market remained in shutdown mode as post-tropical cyclone Sandy slammed into New Jersey , with a reported 13-foot storm surge inundating low lying areas including New York ’s subway system (see below). In Europe , markets were quiet and rangy, although sentiment remained positive on solid earnings reports from BP and Deutsche Bank AG. …

Haier has got over the 90 per cent threshold to take full control of Fisher & Paykel Appliances. It will now compulsorily acquire remaining shares and delist the company. Haier New Zealand Investment’s offer for all the shares in Fisher & Payel Appliances went unconditional last week. NZ Inc earlier reported Haier  received the Overseas Investment Office ‘s consent to proceed with …

Livestock Improvement Corp has granted an extension to Agria on the Chinese company’s $10 million loan it used to help it take control of PGG Wrightson. “To give Agria time to source additional funds to enable repayment, the payment date for these amounts has been extended,” LIC said in a statement. “The effect of that extension is that an amount …

US Ambassador Mike Moore posted on Twitter that Washington DC is now taking a battering. “The trees in Washington don’t like the wind … and it’s about Wellington windy right now,” he tweeted. The New Zealand Embassy in Washington has been closed and the country’s consulate in New York is also shut. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade says …

GLOBAL MARKETS: Our London colleagues report that it was all about Hurricane Sandy overnight  with the closure of many markets, including the bond market. With trading on US Treasuries closed and further bad headlines and data out of Europe , German bunds were very well supported, as were Australasian bonds. There is still no official opening time for the CME …

The NZ Government issued its response to the Productivity Commission’s report on housing affordability. “High house prices matter because many New Zealanders spend a large portion of their incomes on housing and that has helped fuel household debt and contribute to damaging imbalances in the economy,” Finance Minister Bill English says. “In particular, high housing debt diverts money from more …

Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully is off to  Papua New Guinea  to meet members of the new government, including Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato. The meetings will include discussions on Asia-Pacific regional issues, trade and investment links, aid, and political and economic developments in Papua New Guinea and Bougainville. McCully will travel to the Highlands region …