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Wall Street moved higher, pushing the Dow to a record high, while the US dollar also strengthened in anticipation of fresh stimulus from the European Central Bank on Thursday and a key American jobs report on Friday. The latest private payrolls data offered evidence on strength in the US labour market, bolstering optimism for Friday’s government report. Companies in the …

Startup biotech company Quantec Ltd has signed a Mexican distribution partner agreement to launch its anti-acne cream, the only treatment globally with a patented ingredient derived from cow’s milk. The Hamilton-based company launched the Epiology brand of anti-acne cream in New Zealand pharmacies in May and claims to have already gained a 10 percent share of the market.  The anti-acne cream is now …

Denmark has toppled New Zealand as having the world’s least corrupt public sector, in part because of the long gestation of new anti-graft legislation, which meant the nation couldn’t ratify the UN convention against corruption. New Zealand’s score of 91 out of 100 in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index for 2014,  while Denmark moved up one point to 92. Nearest neighbour Australia’s score fell to …

New Zealand shares rose led by Chorus as investors mull the impact of the proposed regulated price on the network operator’s copper lines, while Spark New Zealand extended its decline on the prospect higher costs. Fonterra Shareholders’ Fund gained on falling global dairy prices. The NZX 50 Index rose 73.031 points, or 1.3 percent, to 5503.066. Within the index, 40 stocks rose, …

The New Zealand dollar followed its trans-Tasman counterpart lower after weaker than expected Australian economic data weighed on the outlook for the two, and as investors continued to back the greenback. The kiwi fell to 77.71 US cents at 5pm in Wellington from 77.91 cents at 8am, down 78.76 cents yesterday. The currency was little changed at 92.56 Australian cents from 92.53 cents …

New Zealand new vehicle sales reached their highest ever for November with 2014 expected to be a record year as a buoyant local economy and cheaper prices underpin demand. Registrations for new vehicles rose 7.6 percent to 11,176 in November from the previous record for the month in 2013, the Lower Hutt-based Motor Industry Association said in a statement. New vehicle …

Equities on Wall Street gained, along with the US dollar, amid optimism the American economy remains on firm footing after a report showed spending on construction is outpacing forecasts. In afternoon trading in New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.51 percent, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 0.54 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.41 percent. …

Summerset Group Holdings, the listed retirement village, has been granted resource consent for its $80 million Wigram village, its first in Christchurch. The new site will have some 200 units, including villas, townhouses and care apartments as well as 50 hospital-level beds, the Wellington-based company said in a statement. Building will begin next month with first homes opening late next year. …

ANZ Bank New Zealand has agreed to a $19 million settlement with the Commerce Commission after an investigation into the marketing and sale of interest rate swaps to rural customers between 2005 and 2009. Under the settlement the local unit of Australia & New Zealand Banking Group will establish an $18.5 million fund to pay affected rural customers and pay …

The volume and value of cash trading on New Zealand’s stock exchange fell in November from a year earlier, with activity down across the board. The total number of trades dropped 16 percent to 118,248 in November from the same month in 2013, for a total value of trading worth $3.2 billion, down some 39 percent from a year earlier, …