A management buyout of the Royal Bank of Scotland's 50% share in ABN Amro Craigs has put the full ownership of the sharebroker into the hands of about 130 senior employees.
Reports that 60 employees would lose their jobs because of the buyout circulated yesterday, soon after the announcement was made public.
The ambitious Five Mile development on the outskirts of Queenstown has been put up for a mortgagee sale, but its developer, Dave Henderson, says he remains determined to see it through.
Dunedin-based list MP Metira Turei is a frontrunner to replace departing Green Party co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons who announced yesterday she would relinquish the role.
The global malaise continues to hurt sharemarkets with the NZX yesterday catching the cold started in the United States and which spread into Australia and Asia as the day progressed.
Contact Energy yesterday produced an interim result ahead of some forecasts but still disappointed the market with its failure to provide some profit guidance for the full year.
The leadership of the Green Party will be decided at its annual conference in Dunedin at Queen's Birthday weekend, with list MP Metiria Turei a likely frontrunner for the co-leader's job.
The global credit crisis is rapidly changing the way large companies source cash to help strengthen their balance sheets, ABN Amro Craigs broker Peter McIntyre says.
Data due out around the world this week is unlikely to impress investors, with more New Zealand companies likely to disappoint and the United States benchmark share indices remaining under selling pressure.
The NZX-50 yesterday tested new lows, following the lead of the Dow Jones Industrial index which fell to a six-year low as United States bank shares plunged on investor fears.
The Government's financial position is almost certain to worsen as the year progresses and tax revenue slips as company profits fall.
International brewer Lion Nathan defied volatile conditions to report improved trading figures for the three months ended December 31.
Jewellery retailer Michael Hill International used a tax credit of nearly $53 million to help substantially boost its after-tax profit in the six months ended December 31.
Companies reporting their interim results this week can expect to come under close scrutiny from sharebrokers as the balance sheets are dissected for clues about future earnings and ongoing dividends.
A non-cash write-down of Auckland International Airport's investment property portfolio marred an otherwise strong financial result for the six months ended December.
Energy company Vector Ltd provided a bright spot for investors yesterday when it reported an improved interim result for the six months ended December 31.
Tourism Holdings Ltd yesterday reported an interim financial result that disappointed the market, with a warning from chairman Keith Smith about an uncertain climate for forward business.
Sharebrokers ABN Amro Craigs and Forsyth Barr yesterday slashed their valuations of Fisher and Paykel Appliances in the wake of Monday's savage profit and trading update.
The Government appears to be backing away from providing any guarantee to preventing Fisher and Paykel Appliances from failing after the company indicated on Monday it was in some difficulty.
Fisher and Paykel Appliances (FPA) managing director and chief executive John Bongard has taken a pay cut of about $90,000 as one of New Zealand's most readily identifiable companies faces worsening economic conditions.
Fisher and Paykel Appliances, one of New Zealand's best-known companies, is undergoing a massive change of identity, which could mean it takes on an overseas cornerstone investor and drops out of the top 10 sharemarket index.
