Topic: New Zealand

New Zealand unveiled its toughest budget in 20 years on Thursday, with no spending increase and moves to increase the tax take in the struggling economy, as it laid out a return to a budget surplus by 2015.

New Zealand's economy is faced with the risk of a high exchange rate and falling commodity prices, putting pressure on the exporters and slowing recovery, the central bank said on Thursday.

Getting away from it all gets harder and harder, as cell phones and 4G devices keep us tapped into our lives. These 10 getaways take up that challenge, spiriting you away from worldly cares. And we promise you won’t miss civilization one bit.

U.S. crime-fighters failed in a bid to keep alleged Internet pirate Kim Dotcom behind bars when a New Zealand court freed him from jail and instead put him under effective house arrest and banned him from using the Internet.

New Zealand retail sales volumes grew more than expected in the December quarter, helped by spending during the Rugby World Cup, but the upbeat data did not alter expectations that interest rates will stay low for now in an uncertain global economy.

An earthquake of 5.8 magnitude struck near the New Zealand city of Christchurch on Friday, New Zealand's civil defense said, prompting the evacuation of some public buildings and sending goods toppling from shelves.

New Zealand's economy grew at its fastest pace in almost two years in the September quarter as manufacturing and retail spending rose during the Rugby World Cup, but markets remained wary of the impact from the European debt crisis and continued to expect low interest rates for longer. 

New Zealand business confidence rose for the first time in four months in November, and firms were more optimistic about their own prospects going into next year even as Europe's debt crisis put pressure on domestic interest rate expectations.