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  • Drought slows New Zealand economic growth

    New Zealand's economy grew by 0.3 percent in the March quarter, with the nationwide summer drought offsetting the effects of the reconstruction of the earthquake-battered Canterbury region, the government statistics agency reported Thursday. The "modest growth" in GDP followed a rise of 1.5 percent in the December 2012 quarter, said a statement from Statistics New Zealand. "The Canterbury ...

  • Duo plead not guilty to murdering Indian in New Zealand

    Two men accused of murdering an Indian-origin man in New Zealand in January have pleaded not guilty and are now headed for trial. Bryne Pelmar, 20, and Shivneel Shahil Kumar, 18, have been charged with burning alive 21-year-old Shalvin Prasad Jan 30 in south Auckland. The two appeared in the Auckland High Court Wednesday and pleaded not guilty to the charge, media reports said. Both the ...

  • Healthy progress made on consents

    Thursday, 20 June 2013, 6:11 pm Press Release: Christchurch City Council Thursday 20 June, 2013 Healthy progress made on consents Christchurch City Council staff have reduced the backlog of 500 building consents to 371 in just four working days. Today [20 June 2013] the Council's figures show there are 1185 current building consents being processed, with a backlog of 371 consents. ...

  • Wellington City seeks public voice on alcohol harm reduction

    The Wellington City Council has today agreed the shape of its draft Local Alcohol Policy and draft Alcohol Management Strategy for public consultation.The policy, mandated under Central Government legislation looks at the sale and availability of alcohol, including the number of outlets, their location and conditions under which they can operate. The Local Alcohol Policy has recommended ...

  • Ranger confirms Montpellier move

    All Blacks wing Rene Ranger has confirmed that he was quitting his international career in favour of a lucrative contract with Montpellier. Ranger ended weeks of speculation about his future just hours after he learned he had earned a place in the starting side for Saturday's third Test against France after explosive performances off the bench in the first two Tests."It's a lot ...

Movie Review

Antz

Antz

"Antz" is a funny, ambitious computer-animated fable about the battle for individuality in an environment of strict social control. It's the only animated movie I can think of that revolves around an insect worker leading a social revolution. This is an undeniably unique motion picture. If it seems odd for what is ostensibly a kid's feature to have serious underlying themes like the evil of totali ... ...

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  • New Zealand to step up financial monitoring to detect money-laundering

    The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) will step up monitoring of financial institutions at the end of this month as the country's new anti-money laundering (AML) regulations take effect, a senior official said Thursday.The new regime, which will take effect on June 30, would reduce the chances of New Zealand being involved in terrorism financing and enhance the country's international ...

  • Hundreds without power as winters bite deepens

    The delights and dramas of South snowfall (0:35) Hundreds of homes are tonight without power and all alpine passes have been closed as a winter storm continues to batter the South Island. Canterbury, Otago and Southland have experienced cold temperatures and heavy snow, causing road closures and flight cancellations. MetService reports that a very strong and cold southerly flow now covers ...

  • Mark Lundys sister hopeful over appeal bid

    video The sister of convicted double murderer Mark Lundy says she is hopeful his appeal will be successful. Lundy's fate now lies in the hands of the Privy Council in London which has reserved its decision after hearing a three day appeal. Lundy is appealing his life sentence with a non-parole period of 20 years for killing his wife Christine and daughter Amber, 7, in their ...

  • New Zealand dollar slides

    Exporter confidence up despite strong dollar - survey The New Zealand dollar fell, hit by a triple-whammy of local first-quarter growth coming in at half what economists were expecting, a slowing manufacturing sector in China and the Federal Reserve signalling plans to wind back its bond-buying programme. The kiwi fell to 78.54 US cents at 5pm from 78.84 cents at 8am, and 79.88 cents ...

  • Kiwi froze to death in Queensland

    Queensland Police are still awaiting the results of a post-mortem and preparing a report for the Coroner. Photo / Thinkstock A New Zealander who "froze" to death in inland Queensland yesterday chose the "coldest day of the year" to sleep outside, locals say. Friends found the 44-year-old Wellingtonian dead about 4am yesterday. Local media said the man, who had been living ...

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