The extraordinary strength of the New Zealand dollar against the aussie wasn't the main reason why Infratil and the New Zealand Superannuation Fund decided to buy RetireAustralia, but it helped.

United States markets head into the last week of the year with a "Santa Claus rally" having lifted them to record highs, picking up momentum from outstanding GDP numbers in the world's biggest economy.

The initial public offering pipeline is expected to keep delivering in the year ahead, but market watchers say it will be a challenge to match or exceed 2014's bumper crop of 12 IPOs.

Summer Herald The Corner Office: Rory Glass is the managing director of brewer Lion New Zealand.

The world economy enters 2015 at a fork in the road. One track leads to the self-sustaining vigorous recovery that policymakers have sought in vain since the financial crisis erupted in 2007.

Air New Zealand's flights to Buenos Aires will be more than a third filled with passengers from Australia, an analysis of the service says.

The benchmark NZX 50 Index hit its highest point yesterday and has risen by 17 per cent in 2014, marking another golden year for local equities.

Mighty River Power and the Tuwharetoa Maori Trust Board have signed a deal over water in Lake Taupo, the terms of which the electricity generator says are confidential.

APN News & Media has increased its presence in the Australian broadcasting scene through the purchase of Perth radio station 96FM from rival publisher Fairfax Media.

The Commerce Commission says it found no evidence that Fletcher Building's Winstone Wallboards unit engaged in anti-competitive behaviour to protect its dominance in the market.

Liam Dann writes: 2014 doesn't look like letting go early. In fact, like a good TV drama, it looks set to end on a cliff-hanger.

A prominent commercial real estate financier says land-bankers are ruining Auckland's central business district by leaving many sites vacant for decades.

New Zealand cleaning products company ecostore has signed a deal that will see the company export to South Korea from next year.

Here's what's happening in Russia: Its currency has lost half its value, investors have pulled billions of dollars amid an oil plunge. Now here's what's not happening.

Russia's currency crisis has added risk to world markets, but the New Zealand economy is likely to be spared direct impact, analysts say.

Institutional shareholders need to place more focus on demanding quality corporate governance from firms they have investments in, says FMA chief executive Rob Everett.

The dynamic of the new oil shock is moving fast - maybe too fast for the fragile global economic recovery, writes Liam Dann.

Rob Fyfe thought life would be a lot quieter when he stepped down as boss of Air New Zealand but he has just taken up his latest role as strategic adviser to winery Craggy Range.

The Australian wing of a United States investment fund could swoop in front of Capital + Merchant Finance investors and take a chunk of an $18.5 million settlement.

The Fonterra Shareholders Council is "broadly supportive" of plans for the co-operative to start sourcing milk from South Island suppliers who are not also shareholders.