Auckland house prices 'an abomination'

Statement from Property Council NZ

Auckland house prices will continue being outrageously high if Auckland Council doesn’t treat the housing supply shortage seriously in its rulebook.

Concern increased retirement contributions could result in backdoor education cuts

The education sector union NZEI TE Riu Roa is calling on the government to come clean about how increased employer contributions to Kiwisaver and other retirement schemes will be funded for the education sector.

Kiwibank cuts two-year mortgage rate

Kiwibank has kicked off its 2015 mortgage campaign with a two-year mortgage rate cut from 5.75% p.a. to 5.55% p.a. The bank is also offering a cash incentive of $2015 for all new home lending over $100,000 (minimum 20% equity).

Skilled job vacancies grew in December

Skilled job vacancies advertised online increased by 1.1 per cent for the month of December, and were up 7.4 per cent in the past year to December, according to the latest Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Jobs Online report.

IRD collects $4.1 billion of tax debt in 2013/14

Revenue Minister Todd McClay says Inland Revenue’s focus on collecting tax debt has paid big dividends, with $752 million more being collected in 2013/14 than in the previous year.

Discretionary spending increases

Figures released today by Paymark, which processes around 75% of all electronic transactions in New Zealand, show that Kiwis spent a total of just over $4.6 billion in December via Paymark's network, pushing the annual growth rate up slightly to 3.4 per cent.

Antarctica comes to Auckland Museum this August

Step ‘inside’ the historic huts of Antarctic explorers Captain Robert Falcon Scott and Sir Ernest Shackleton to relive a time of extraordinary polar exploration in a new exhibition based around the work of New Zealand photographer Jane Ussher.

FMA warns individual trader over online market manipulation

The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) has issued a warning to an individual online trader in relation to suspected market manipulation trading conduct.