Duncan Coull, Chairman of the Fonterra Shareholders’ Council, has expressed his absolute disappointment with today’s Board decision to reduce the 2017/18 forecast Farmgate Milk Price by five cents to $6.70 per kg/MS in order to support the balance sheet, and the decision to retain more of the Co-op’s earnings which will likely see no further dividend payment to Shareholders over the 10 cents distributed earlier in the year.

The role of small business in the economy is to be enhanced with a new strategy to drive performance and better connect small and medium enterprises with government, large businesses and research institutions.

The Reserve Bank is vacating its Wellington building for about three months so it can remediate asbestos issues.

The Commerce Commission has given Austrian oil and gas producer OMV AG clearance to buy Royal Dutch Shell’s gas and liquids assets in New Zealand. . . . .

On August 3, 2018, New Zealand’s primary workplace health and safety regulator announced it would only investigate bullying in the workplace if the victim has been diagnosed as being seriously mentally harmed.

Air New Zealand has been named in the FTSE4Good Index Series for the second consecutive year.

The Government has announced their Mana in Mahi – Strength in Work Scheme, which will provide support payments equivalent to the persons benefit to employers who take on apprentices aged 18 to 24 years, who have been on a benefit for six or more months.

The Free Speech Coalition has resolved that, contingent on raising sufficient funds, it will be issuing legal proceedings against the Vice-Chancellor of Massey University.

Fonterra Cooperative Group's 2018 earnings may differ from its previous guidance, the country's dominant dairy company said today. Its securities trading on the NZX and ASX have been halted while it crunches the numbers, with an update expected tomorrow . . . .

Newly appointed KiwiRail chair Greg Miller has also been appointed to a five-member working group charged with writing a new upper North Island supply chain strategy to guide the government's desire to integrate port, rail and road transport infrastructure planning for the country's economic and population epicentre.

The period for providing feedback on the proposal to simplify Victoria University of Wellington’s name to ‘University of Wellington’ has been extended to Monday 27 August.