The contrast in fortunes this week between two parts of New Zealand could not have been starker.

ASB has joined Westpac in offering the new PayTag service, which involves stickers attached to smartphones to speed up payments.

Auckland property values are picking up speed at an "eyewatering" pace, with some areas up 5pc in only three months, according to QV.

ANZ has admitted misleading conduct over interest rate swaps and up to 178 farmers will now have to decide whether to accept their share of $18.5 million from the bank.

ANZ will pay $18.5m to some of its rural customers who complained about interest rate swaps after reaching a settling with the Commerce Commission.

A woman who baked a cake and iced it with foul language directed toward her old bosses says they are using the frosty dessert to end her career.

Tomorrow will see the last GlobalDairyTrade auction before Fonterra releases its revised farmgate milk price forecast for 2014/15.

Inflation is the right target for monetary policy, says Reserve Bank governor Graeme Wheeler, and has served the country well over the past 25 years.

The Reserve Bank's influence over long-term interest rates is limited by global investor activity, according to governor Graeme Wheeler.

Auckland homeowners made wealthy by their latest Auckland Council valuations are borrowing to do up their houses.

China's central bank said its surprise move to cut interest rates for the first time since 2012 is designed to help small firms.

Reserve Bank deputy governor Grant Spencer says the arrival of Asian banking giants is a watershed event that will boost competition and keep the dominant lenders "on their toes".

Global dairy markets have plummeted but New Zealand beef prices have continued to hit record highs, while sheepmeat prices have stayed firm, Rabobank says.

Home buyers seeking low-deposit mortgages could find it even tougher to secure funds after Kiwibank said it was suspending new loans.

The net population gain from migration hit new highs last month and is seen as a key reason Reserve Bank governor Graeme Wheeler's foot remains closer to the brake pedal.

KiwiSaver tax credits cost around $800 million a year but careful analysis by Treasury economists on household finances can find no evidence it has boosted accumulation of wealth.