HOT TOPICS:   Euro crisis   |   Mortgage rate cuts  |    Budget 2012

Never a dull moment for the NZ$

25 May 12, 5:22pm, Gareth Vaughan
HiFX's Dan Bell says European Central Bank may cut interest rates and get its printing press out again before the all important June 17 Greek election

'Next 5-10 years make or break for NZ'

25 May 12, 4:50pm, Alex Tarrant
Next 5-10 years make or break for NZ economy, ANZ chief economist Bagrie says; Urges govt to turn attention to natural resources, renewables potential; Details the 6 Cs

What covered bonds mean for ma and pa

25 May 12, 4:45pm, Gareth Vaughan
What anyone with a home loan and/or bank deposit needs to know about the bank bonds compared with drugs and prostitution

ASB March quarter profit up 21%

25 May 12, 4:34pm, Gareth Vaughan
ASB posts 21% rise in unaudited March quarter profit to NZ$160 mln as impairments fall; Big drop in home loans with loan-to-valuation ratios over 90% explained

Market holds steady after budget

25 May 12, 8:24am, bnzeconomists
BNZ not expecting NZ Govt Stock issuance to be ramped up given historically low yields

Economic prospects dim

25 May 12, 8:03am, BusinessDesk
Most of the bad news is already priced into equity markets; traders buying on weakness

BNZ's high LVR mortgages up again

24 May 12, 4:57pm, Gareth Vaughan
BNZ grows residential mortgages with loan-to-valuation ratios above 80% in March quarter

Brierley clings to GPG board seat

24 May 12, 3:41pm, BusinessDesk
Sir Ron Brierley takes GPG shareholders' down memory lane as he hangs on to board seat with 50.75% of votes cast; Says 'why wouldn't I want to carry on?'

Profitable power company sale to prop up loss-making railway

24 May 12, 2:48pm, BusinessDesk
KiwiRail the main beneficiary of Future Investment Fund proceeds from MightyRiverPower sell-down

DMO flags inflation-indexed bonds

24 May 12, 2:38pm, BusinessDesk
$45.5 bln of new debt to include $4 bln inflation-indexed bonds; $3 bln lower than flagged in PREFU

Bill's ChCh CHA budget

24 May 12, 2:28pm, Bernard Hickey
Budget 2012 is a steady as she goes budget that relies on growth and a bit of tweaking to return to surplus, but doesn't shift NZ's growth track

Budget surplus target may slip

Updated 24 May 12, 2:25pm, Bernard Hickey
English acknowledges economic downside scenario would force NZ government to borrow more for longer and let surplus target slip "a bit"

Treasury lowers interest rate track

24 May 12, 2:12pm, Alex Tarrant
Treasury lowers forecast interest rate track over next four years; Expects first OCR hike at start of 2013, and for OCR to rise higher than Reserve Bank thinks

Govt eyes NZ$1.4b revenue grab

24 May 12, 2:04pm, Alex Tarrant
Govt eyes NZ$1.4 bln extra revenue over next four years as tobacco excise hiked, mixed-use and livestock rules tightened, tax compliance increased

NZ swap yields fall further

24 May 12, 8:29am, bnzeconomists
Short end of yield curve pricing in 50 bps cut to OCR

Euro contingency plans

24 May 12, 8:12am, BusinessDesk
Eurozone concerns continue to weigh heavily on global stock and commodity markets

Door open for covered bonds from non-banks

23 May 12, 4:53pm, Gareth Vaughan
Govt Bill allows banks to use assets other than residential mortgages for covered bond security and entities other than registered banks to issue covered bonds in the future

Profit up at power network operator

23 May 12, 4:32pm, BusinessDesk
Powerco 9-month earnings rise 8.9% in new balance date, boosts dividend

Wednesday's Top 10 with NZ Mint

23 May 12, 10:05am, David Chaston
Analysing the Greens/BERL critique; Better Life Index; 'It's here and it's unclear'; Decline; Magic; bloopers; Dilbert

NZ 5-year swap rate back over 3%

23 May 12, 8:53am, bnzeconomists
NZ Bond yields supported by better than expected Fonterra payout

Fonterra to tighten TAF rules

23 May 12, 8:46am, BusinessDesk
Fonterra tightens TAF rules to safeguard 100% farmer ownership, following concerns raised about size of new 'shareholders' fund for redemption capital

US housing provides lift

23 May 12, 7:46am, BusinessDesk
BusinessDesk: "The risk is increasing of a vicious circle, involving sovereign debt, weak banking, excessive fiscal consolidation and low growth': OECD

Basel III moral hazards highlighted

22 May 12, 4:31pm, Gareth Vaughan
Fitch sees potential for worse deals for customers, riskier activities & regulatory arbitrage from 'too big to fail banks' needing US$566b to meet Basel III rules

Rabobank's NZ$19.6m quarterly profit

22 May 12, 4:26pm, Gareth Vaughan
Rural lender Rabobank records 48% rise in March quarter profit despite increase in impairments on loans

Relief rebound

22 May 12, 7:59am, BusinessDesk
Sentiment rebounds as G8 commits to bolster growth in the eurozone - 'not all fear realised'