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March 23 (BusinessDesk) – Pumpkin Patch, whose shares soared on Friday after the children’s clothing retailer announced it was seeking proposals to acquire or refinance the company, said today that it was too soon to predict an outcome or what value any proposal would put on the company.   The shares jumped 33 percent to a four-month high 28 cents on Friday after the …

Mark Powell, chief executive of retailer Warehouse Group, says he hopes to eventually see someone promoted to his role that started out in the Red Shirts in Schools programme as a 16 year old.   “There’s not many companies that can say that anymore, but it’s possible in our industry and in our business,” he said.   Powell’s comments came at the official opening …

New Zealand consumer confidence edged up in March with both current and future measures increasing.   The ANZ-Roy Morgan consumer confidence index rose to 124.6 in March from 124 in February. The current conditions index advanced to 123.7 from 123, while the future conditions index gained to 125.3 from 124.6.   “Amidst some volatility from month to month, the underlying …

By Fran O’Sullivan, Alexander Speirs Fonterra’s Lukas Paravicini was on the money when he warned this month that the global supply and demand balance for dairy was still fragile. Fonterra’s farmer shareholders — like other milk producers in New Zealand – had been looking forward to a continuation in this year’s upswing for prices at the GlobalDairyTrade auction, as the …

A resurgence in property prices means LVR ‘speed limits’ are like to stay in place, Standard & Poor’s says in a report that predicts banks will continue to post strong earnings growth while trading in the shadow of a “heightened risk” of a future property crash.   “The relatively low level of credit losses over the next two-to-three years will continue, underpinning …

Fliway Group, the transport and logistics company, has been priced at $1.20 a share in the bookbuild for its initial public offering, the bottom end of the indicative range, people say.   Existing shareholders Duncan and Gretchen Hawkesby will retain 54 percent of the South Auckland-based company, market participants told BusinessDesk. The couple planned to retain 30 percent to 50 percent of the company after the …

New Zealand has a “two-speed” economy as strong domestic demand cushions a weaker export sector, according to Moody’s Analytics. GDP data due tomorrow will probably show New Zealand’s economy expanded 0.8 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, said Faraz Syed, an associate economist at Moody’s Analytics, a division of Moody’s Corp which is independent of the credit ratings …

‘Coverage of the free trade agreement just concluded with South Korea has been all about agriculture – which is being talked up without anyone being able to see the fine print’, according to Professor Jane Kelsey, It appears the legal scrubbing of the text will take several more months. Until then New Zealanders will not get to see what the …

NZX says reaching 200,000 dairy derivative contracts traded across its platform shows the market operator is on track to become the global hub for trading tied to New Zealand’s biggest export commodity. Trading exceeded the trading milestone this month on the NZX Global Dairy Derivatives Market, which was launched in October 2010 to offer risk management for the dairy industry It followed the establishment of Fonterra Cooperative …

Professional director Joan Withers has been named chair of Television New Zealand, replacing Wayne Walden. Withers has been deputy chair of the state-owned broadcaster since 2009 and her previous experience in media companies includes being chief executive of Fairfax Media New Zealand. TVNZ dominates free-to-air broadcasting in New Zealand and its market share rose to 61.6 percent in the first half from …