Television Advertising revenue up 10.8%
Television advertising revenue increased by 10.8 per cent ($12.3 million) to $126.5 million for the three months to 31 March 2004 compared to $114.2 million for the same period in 2003.
The NZTBC’s Executive Director, Bruce Wallace said, “Continuing improvements in revenues are encouraging and show excellent support from advertisers for television. Nielsen Media Research reported [...]
April New Dwellings Maintain High Level
Consents were issued for 2,486 new dwelling units in April 2004, according to Statistics New Zealand. This is up 254 units or 11 percent, compared with April 2003.
Consents for 588 new apartment units were issued in April 2004, compared with 548 in March 2004, and 559 in February 2004.
Consents for 31,677 new dwelling units were [...]
Input And Output Prices Fall
Input prices in the Producers Price Index (PPI) fell 0.5 percent and output prices fell 0.1 percent in the March 2004 quarter, according to latest figures from Statistics New Zealand.
The most significant downward contribution to the PPI inputs index in the March 2004 quarter came from an 11.1 percent fall in the electricity generation and [...]
Sheep Numbers Show Slow Growth
The sheep industry recorded only modest growth, according to the 2003 Agriculture Production Survey released today by Statistics New Zealand. At 30 June 2003, there were 39.7 million sheep in New Zealand, up from 39.6 million recorded the previous year.
The growth in this period can be partly attributed to dry weather conditions, especially in the [...]
House Values Continue To Grow
New Zealand house prices have now increased for 11 consecutive quarters, provisional figures for the quarter ending March 2004 released by Quotable Value (QV) today reveal.
The overall NZ QV House Price Index (QV HPI) shows an increase of 22% for the year ending March 2004. This annual growth compares favourably with the substantial growth of [...]
Commission Grants Clearance To Visy Ind. Plastics
The Commerce Commission has cleared Visy Industrial Plastics (NZ) Limited to acquire the plastic packaging businesses and assets of ACI Operations NZ Limited.
Visy and its associated entities manufacture, distribute and supply various polyethylene containers including pails and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) beverage containers.
Visy's application related to the acquisition of ACI's business of manufacturing, distributing and supplying [...]
Government Gives Up On Growth
"With the 2004 budget the government has abandoned any pretence that its top priority is economic growth", Roger Kerr, executive director of the New Zealand Business, said today. "No long-term strategy is laid out for making New Zealand a high productivity, high wage, high employment economy.
"The budget is almost all about wealth redistribution (dividing the [...]
District Health Board Deficit Decreases
The combined deficit of New Zealand’s 21 district health boards (DHBs) was $13.3 million for the March 2004 quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand. This was a $26.0 million decrease on the $39.3 million deficit recorded in the December 2003 quarter, and is $19.4 million lower than the deficit in the March 2003 quarter.
Total DHB [...]
Farm Input Prices Rise 0.3 Percent
The Farm Expenses Price Index (FEPI) rose 0.3 percent in the March 2004 quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand. In the year from the March 2003 quarter to the March 2004 quarter, the FEPI fell 1.4 percent.
The most significant upward contribution to the rise in the FEPI in the latest quarter came from the repairs, [...]
Feltex Share Offer Price Set At $1.70 Per Share
Feltex Carpets Limited has today announced that the final price of Shares in its Initial Public Offering ("IPO") has been determined.
The final price has been set at $1.70 per Share. At the final price, Feltex will have a market capitalisation of $254 million making it the largest IPO of a New Zealand company since 1999. [...]
Manufacturing Expansion Slows In April
New Zealand manufacturing expansion slowed in April but the outlook still remains positive, according to the latest ANZ-Business NZ Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI).
Overall New Zealand’s PMI value increased in both February and March, peaking at 58.9 in March before slipping to 54.8 in April (a PMI reading above 50 points indicates expansion and below [...]
Capital Goods Price Index Rises 0.9 Percent
Capital goods prices rose 0.9 percent in the March 2004 quarter, when compared with the December 2003 quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand. On an annual basis, the Capital Goods Price Index (CGPI) rose 2.5 percent from the March 2003 quarter to the March 2004 quarter.
The most significant contribution to the overall increase for the [...]
Ryman Posts Another Record Net Surplus
Leading New Zealand retirement village operator Ryman Healthcare today posted a record net surplus of $18.4 million, 20 percent up on last year.
Ryman increased its annual dividend to shareholders from 7.5c to 9c as a result of a strong financial year.
“We have experienced five years of rapid growth since floating on the stock exchange by [...]
Carter Holt Harvey Completes Tissue Sale
On 12 May 2004 Carter Holt Harvey (CHH) advised the market that the agreement to sell its Tissue business and 50 per cent interest in Sancella to Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget (SCA) had become unconditional.
CHH is pleased to advise it has successfully completed the sale of its Tissue business and 50 per cent interest in Sancella [...]
Toll NZ buys back full share in Tranz Scenic
Toll NZ announced today that the company has regained full ownership of the long distance rail passenger service, Tranz Scenic. In 2001, Tranz Rail sold a fifty per cent share in Tranz Scenic to two Australian rail enthusiasts, Don Gibson and Gary McDonald.
Toll NZ chief executive officer David Jackson says, “the decision to return to [...]
Hirequip Acquires Power Hire
Listed hire company Hirequip today announced it has bought the assets and business of Power Hire Limited for $11.3 million. The acquisition will be settled by way of $5.8 million in cash with the balance through the issue of 5.79 million Hirequip shares at 95 cents per share. The exchange terms were established earlier in [...]
Commission Grants Clearance To SKYCITY
The Commerce Commission has cleared SKYCITY Entertainment Group Limited to acquire all the shares and assets of Aspinall (NZ) Limited.
Aspinall holds approximately 40.5 percent in Christchurch Casinos Limited, which owns and operates the Christchurch Casino.
Chair Paula Rebstock said that the Commission was satisfied that the proposed acquisition would not have, nor would be likely to [...]
Misleading Promotion Costs Company $9,000
Misleading electricity customers about the chance to win free power if they took out 'PowerPLUS' power insurance has cost marketing company David Barrowclough Direct Limited $9,000.
David Barrowclough Direct pleaded guilty to five charges of breaching the Fair Trading Act in the Auckland District Court last week.
The Commerce Commission has laid similar charges against Royal Sun [...]
Retail Trade Survey: March
March Quarter Retail Sales Increase Seasonally adjusted total retail sales increased 2.8 percent in the March 2004 quarter, compared with the December 2003 quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand.
Excluding the motor vehicle related industries, seasonally adjusted retail sales increased 2.1 percent over the same period. On a monthly basis, seasonally adjusted total retail sales increased [...]
Refund For Customers Following 'Invoice' Mail Out
Australian-based website design and hosting company, Time Away Services Pty Limited, has agreed to refund all money paid by New Zealand businesses on an 'invoice' document sent out in November 2003, and has admitted, in a settlement with the Commerce Commission, that it was likely to breach the Fair Trading Act.
The Commission investigated complaints arising [...]
Food Prices Fall in April
Food prices fell 0.2 percent in April 2004, according to latest figures from Statistics New Zealand. Lower prices for fruit and vegetables were partly offset by higher prices for grocery food, soft drinks and confectionery; restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food; and meat, fish and poultry.
Prices for fruit and vegetables fell by 3.0 percent in April [...]
Hot Market in a Coal Climate
Solid Energy, a former export award winner, has signed a recent deal to sell SAIL (Steel Authority of India Ltd) up to 1.5 million metric tonnes of hard coking coal over the next five years. This is worth in excess of $120 million.As part of Solid Energy's market expansion strategies in India it also secured [...]
Contact Energy Disposes Of E://Volution E-Business
Contact Energy has disposed of all its interests in online procurement business e://volution E-Business Limited.
Since acquisition, the results of e://volution have not been material in relation to the Contact Energy Group. The disposal will have a negative $300,000 after tax impact on the net surplus for the year ended 30 September 2004.
The 30 percent shareholding [...]
Guest Nights Continue to Rise
Total guest nights in short-term commercial accommodation were 3.0 million in March 2004, a 3 percent increase compared with March 2003, according to Statistics New Zealand. The underlying trend in total guest nights has been increasing since June 1998. In March 2004, the trend level in total guest nights was 4 percent higher than in [...]
BNZ Shows Steady Improvement with Solid Profit Result
Bank of New Zealand today announced a $264 million profit for the half year ending March 2004. The bank's managing director, Peter Thodey, said that while the profit figure was slightly less than for the same period last year, the last six months had seen Bank of New Zealand repositioning itself to strengthen its place [...]
Unemployment Rate at 4.3 Percent
The March 2004 quarter Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS) results showed tightening labour market conditions, reflected by a quarterly employment growth of 0.9 percent, an increase in total actual hours worked of 1.6 percent, and a fall in the unemployment rate to 4.3 percent. The unemployment rate of 4.3 percent is the fourth lowest for [...]
DB On Track For Target After Impressive First Half
DB Breweries has continued its impressive growth trend, posting a $17.2 million net profit for the six months ended 31 March and placing the company in a sound position to achieve its full year target.
Earnings before interest and tax for the six month period were up 14.2% at $26.8 million, compared with $23.4 million in [...]
March Quarter Export Value Up 5.1 Percent
The seasonally adjusted value of merchandise exports increased 5.1 percent during the March 2004 quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand. The underlying trend for the value of quarterly exports has been increasing for two quarters, following nine consecutive quarters of decline. Over the period of decline, the exchange rate appreciated 25.6 percent. Exchange rate appreciation [...]
Briscoes 1st Quarter Sales To 30 April
The directors of Briscoe Group Limited announce that unaudited sales for the three months ended 30 April 2004 were $67.3 million, being 1.90% lower than the $68.6 million reported for the same quarter of last year.
After adjusting for new stores opened since April 2003, on a same store basis the Group's sales for the quarter [...]
Telecom Delivers On Third Quarter Earnings
Telecom reported today net earnings after tax for the nine months to 31 March 2004 of $NZ597 million compared with $NZ498 million for the same period in 2003.
This result included one-off abnormal items of $NZ40 million including a $NZ28 million profit on the sale of Telecom's 12% stake in Sky Network Television booked in the [...]
Feltex: Iconic Brand Returns To NZ Ownership
Feltex Carpets Limited confirmed its intention to list on the New Zealand sharemarket through the launch today of a public offering of its shares, giving the company a market capitalisation of $254 million to $284 million at the indicative price range per share set under the offer.
The Feltex offering is New Zealand's largest sharemarket issue [...]
Paid Hours Continue To Grow
The March 2004 Quarterly Employment Survey (QES) results showed increases in earnings and paid hours, while employment remained static, according to Statistics New Zealand.
These movements are consistent with historical patterns for March quarters.
Total paid hours in the March quarter increased compared with the previous quarter and the same quarter last year. Seasonally adjusted total paid [...]
Birth Registrations Increase
There were 56,870 live births registered in New Zealand in the March 2004 year, Statistics New Zealand reported today. This is 4.1 percent more than in the March 2003 year (54,660) and the highest number since the March 2000 year (57,930).
Annual birth rates for the March 2004 year suggest that New Zealand women average 1.98 [...]
Commission Clears Supermarket Operator
Progressive Enterprises Ltd (PEL) has been advised that no further action will be taken by the Commerce Commission regarding a complaint against the Foodtown Woolworths onecard.
The Commission has found that wording contained in promotional material for the reward card was not misleading but it may have been confusing to some people.
It says it will not [...]
Sealegs Starting To Make A Splash
Unique Locally Produced Amphibious Boats Make It To Local Market With Deliveries Soon Destined for Overseas
Listed marine company, Sealegs Corporation (NZX:SLG) has announced the initial delivery of two Sealegs 5.6m SLD amphibious marine craft to the local market, with another two soon bound for overseas.
Earlier this year Sealegs had confirmed the production schedule of 12 [...]
Toll NZ Replaces Tranz Rail
From today Tranz Rail Holdings will be known as Toll NZ and name changes will also occur to two restructured key business divisions. The rail operation will be branded Toll Rail and the freight forwarding business will be known as Toll Tranz Link
The name change signals the start of a major rebranding exercise by Toll [...]
Wellington Bypass Decision Welcomed
Transfund's decision to approve funding for Wellington's Inner City Bypass shows that common sense must finally prevail, the Automobile Association says.
"The bypass has been through more planning and review cycles over the past 25 years than anyone might expect for a 700m road. It is therefore pleasing that Transfund has decided to finally provide the [...]
BCL To Manage Warkworth Satellite Station
Broadcast Communications Limited (BCL), a leading outsourcing partner to the communications industry, has signed an agreement with Telecom to manage its satellite telecommunications services currently provided through the Warkworth Satellite Station.
BCL Managing Director Geoff Lawson said as well as managing the day-to-day operations of the station, BCL would work with Telecom to prepare a development [...]
Fujifilm Plans Growth In New Zealand
The recent change of ownership in Fujifilm New Zealand (formerly Hanimex New Zealand) is likely to increase investment in the market for digital imaging technology in this country.
The new owner, Fuji Photo Film Company, has signalled that it will substantially increase its business in both New Zealand and Australia.
The Managing Director of Fujifilm New Zealand, [...]
Class Authorisations For Futures And Options Dealers
New class authorisations for futures and options dealers in New Zealand come into effect today.
The two new class authorisations cover futures and options participants under the New Zealand Stock Exchange (NZX) Futures and Options Rules and participants in the Sydney Futures Exchange (SFE). The authorisation of NZX's futures and options participants follows the approval by [...]