The New Zealand dollar rose to its highest against the Australian dollar since the Aussie was floated in 1983.

Turning carparks into eateries where diners sit on plastic stools and share their table with random strangers may not sound like a recipe for success.

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.

A survey of portable cots for sale in New Zealand has uncovered potentially fatal safety defects - including folding mechanisms that could trap a child's neck.

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

The attack of the new clutter - otherwise known as Christmas - is on its way....

Dairy prices mostly improved at this morning’s GlobalDairyTrade auction, the GDT price index gaining 2.4 per cent.

The medium to long term outlook for NZ dairy farmers remains sound, despite yesterday's payout cut, says rural lender Rabobank.

Fonterra said it had launched a separate milk sourcing subsidiary - mymilk - to grow its market share in the South Island.

Fonterra plans to cut costs and defer some capital expenditure so that an improved dividend can at least partially offset a likely $6b decline in income for the sector.

The industry group DairyNZ estimates that one quarter of dairy farmers will have difficulty paying their bills if Fonterra's reduced farmgate milk price comes to pass.

Fonterra has this morning cut its forecast farmgate milk price payout to its farmers, with its chairman admitted it'll put pressure on farm budgets.

Neither Fonterra nor the Ministry for Primary Industries emerged unscathed in the final report on the botulism scare that rocked the New Zealand dairy industry last year.