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Fletcher Building has won a contract to build 237 homes on an 11.5-hectare Crown-owned site in Christchurch, including 89 which will be priced below $400,000, Housing Minister Nick Smith said. Construction is expected to begin by the end of the year at a build rate of 10 homes a month and a completion date of 2017, Smith said in a statement. The land …

Restaurant Brands New Zealand, the nation’s largest fast food operator, raised its annual profit forecast as it benefits from lower input costs, higher sales and restructuring of stores. The shares rose to a record. Full-year profit, excluding the sale and leaseback of stores, will exceed $22 million, the Auckland-based company said in a statement. That’s higher than the company’s $20 million forecast …

Multi-national oil company Shell’s New Zealand arm and local energy giant Todd Energy have breached the new law governing New Zealand’s Exclusive Economic Zone, the Environmental Protection Authority says in an Oct. 10 document released this evening by the Green Party. The two companies’ joint venture, Shell Todd Oil Services (STOS), has been issued with a warning letter only, and no …

New Zealand shares rose to a record close, led by Xero, as investors returned to more risk-based equities after last week’s volatility. Nuplex gained after selling two of its Australasian assets, while Fletcher Building touched a 2014 low as analysts mulled yesterday’s earnings guidance. The NZX 50 Index rose 46.576 points, or 0.9 percent, to 5279.699. Within the index, 35 stocks rose, 11 fell and …

The New Zealand dollar rose after Australian inflation was a little higher than expected in the third quarter, supporting demand for the Australian dollar and dragging the kiwi with it. The kiwi rose to 79.76 US cents at 5pm in Wellington from 79.55 cents at 8am, though little changed from 79.85 cents yesterday. The local currency gained to 90.71 Australian cents from 90.57 cents …

The New Zealand Superannuation Fund, which was set up to partially cover the cost of a ballooning baby boomer pension bill, has been encouraged to bed in a series of organisational changes over the past few years, and implement a new policy managing its investment in derivative products. The two recommendations are included in the five-year review of the fund …

Quattro Income REIT, an Australian asset management company, has resumed plans to list a New Zealand property portfolio, albeit a smaller number of properties, and has shaved nearly a third off the capital it wants to raise in a public offer on the ASX. The Sydney-based investor will seek to raise A$220 million in an initial public offer, from a previously planned A$305 million, selling …

Vector, the Auckland lines company, says falling electricity consumption will cost it up to $80 million because of the way it’s regulated, according to chief executive Simon Mackenzie. The lines company’s electricity and gas distribution business is regulated by the Commerce Commission, and the regulator’s forecasting doesn’t recognise declining electricity consumption trends, Mackenzie told shareholders in Auckland. That has translated to a …

Recent issues of Orion Health Group shares to private investors provide clues to the issue price in its upcoming initial public offer, The Auckland developer of software systems for patient health management this week confirmed it would raise between $120 million to $150 million through floating on the NZX and ASX late next month.  A prospectus and investment statement are expected out …

A long-awaited free trade agreement between New Zealand and South Korea appears close to being inked following talks in Seoul last week. Officials concluded the ninth round of talks on Friday. Comments by both New Zealand and Korean diplomatic sources suggest the deal is imminent, with people close to the talks saying there were no “thorny issues” outstanding, with both sides in “substantial agreement”. …