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Moa Group posted a wider first-half loss after the unprofitable boutique beer maker restructured its fledgling business and changed distribution and brewing arrangements to underpin future growth. The Auckland-based company posted a loss of $3.21 million, or 9.5 cents a share, in the six months ended Sept. 30, from a loss of $3.04 million, or 10.1 cents, a year earlier, it said in …

ASB has trimmed its milk price forecast to $4.70 per kilogram of milk solids following dairy product prices in the latest GlobalDairyTrade auction falling to the lowest level in more than five years. The GDT average winning price slid 3.1 percent to US$2,561 overnight, the lowest level since August 2009, and down from US$2,649 two weeks ago. Some 39,613 tonnes of …

SeaDragon, which manufactures fish oil for health supplements, has reported a $574,000 half-year loss, 362 percent down on the same period last year after difficulties securing raw material saw its factory underused. The Nelson-based company reported strong sales growth of 23 per cent to $2.6 million in the six months ending Sept. 30, ahead of the $2.4 million the company …

The New Zealand dollar touched a fresh seven-year high against the yen after Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe called a snap election and said he would delay plans to hike sales tax to seek a mandate for economic reform after the country fell into recession. The kiwi reached 93.22 yen, its highest since July 2007, and was trading at 92.75 yen …

The China/Australia Free Trade Agreement, or “CHAfta” as it is being called, gives Australian dairy farmers much better access to the Chinese infant formula market, which they have been beaten out of by the New Zealanders in recent years. Agricultural sector writer Alan Emerson recently noted that in 2009 New Zealand and Australia produced approximately the same amount of milk. …

There can be little doubt that the Australian’s have pulled off a rather remarkable piece of diplomatic manoeuvring to strike what appears to be such a comprehensive and far reaching Free Trade Agreement with the Chinese government. The broadly based FTA includes agreement on areas including Agriculture, Resources, Service industries, Investment and Worker mobility. Few expected anything so extensive or …

The world’s 7th largest bank*, the Bank of China announced that it has been granted its banking licence from the Reserve Bank of  and will formally launch its business at a special ceremony in Auckland on Friday. The granting of the banking licence will allow the Bank of China to meet the growing demand for the significant reciprocal trade opportunities between New Zealand and the People’s …

Australia and China have completed free-trade agreement negotiations, in a deal which Australian government sources say secures better access for the country’s dairy exports than New Zealand’s.  Australian trade and investment minister Andrew Robb and Chinese commerce minister Gao Hucheng will sign a declaration of intent this afternoon, after Prime Minister Tony Abbott and President Xi Jinping concluded talks in Canberra, the Australian …

There is broad global support for moves to curb international tax avoidance, New Zealand Finance Minister Bill English said on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Brisbane. Cracking down on tax avoidance is one of the key agenda items at this weekend’s G20 Summit, where New Zealand is an invited guest. The G20 countries make up 85 percent of global economic activity …

New Zealand’s recently signed Free Trade Agreement with Korea is a positive step in freeing up our trade relations and represents an absolute bottom line for the quality of outcomes for further agreements.  “We appreciate how difficult it has been to reach an agreement with Korea, and are pleased to now be on a level playing field with our trade …