"Was it greed or was it just a case of really bad timing?" asks Liam Dann. "Probably the latter, as the Government must have been hoping for a result which would help promote the next three asset sales to New Zealanders."

Mighty River Power shares slumped to a new low of $2.23 this morning as the local stock exchange followed world markets down, reaching its lowest point in a month.

Well-connected lobbyists Saunders Unsworth worked with Solid Energy, Treasury and Cabinet Ministers to thwart questions about the company's problems.

A sell-off by international investors is likely to be behind the weakness in Mighty River Power's share price, say analysts.

I see little point in the Govt selling shares generating dividend yields of 6 to 7 per cent to avoid borrowing to fund its deficits at around 3 to 4 per cent, writes Peter Lyons.

Ebos Group's $1.1 billion acquisition of Australian firm Symbion this week again highlighted an ongoing issue with getting independent research on NZX-listed companies.

Mighty River Power directors have taken advantage of the slide in the state-controlled power company's price, buying up shares before trading restrictions kick in.

The Government could look to float Genesis Energy between a sell-off of two tranches of Meridian shares.

In terms of time spent and where expertise sits, it is rational to leave the running of that business to the board and management, writes Susan Watson.

The Meridian Energy partial privatisation is so large it may have to be split in two, Prime Minister John Key says.

Not much time has passed since the Government's Budget announcement that shares in Meridian Energy would be the next to be sold.

The Green Party says that shares sold in the recent float of Mighty River Power went to only a small group of investors - and claims of widespread 'mum and dad' ownership are false.

What the assets are worth now depends on the future path of electricity prices and the effect that has on the company's cashflows, writes Brian Fallow.

Struggling KiwiRail may soak up almost $600 million - or a tenth of the cash raised from partially privatising state-owned power companies, Budget documents reveal.

Unless National offers a better loyalty scheme there will be little incentive to apply for shares in Meridian and Genesis, writes John Armstrong.

Newly released papers raise fresh questions over Prime Minister John Key's claim that Solid Energy asked for $1 billion of taxpayers' money to fund its transformation into a massive resources company.

The Government will have to bump up the sweeteners to get enough mum and dad investors to buy into Meridian Energy, an analyst says.

Shares in Mighty River Power ducked below their issue price for the first time since their debut on the NZX today before recovering ground near the close of business.

Against a backdrop of rising share prices and a booming Auckland housing market, investor confidence reached its highest level.

Finance Minister, Bill English, has high hopes that New Zealanders will buy into the partial float of Meridian Energy.