WEEK IN REVIEW

Friday 30th April 2004

Contact Energy posted a 63% higher $55.3 million March first-half profit on strong retail volumes and the addition of the Taranaki Combined Cycle power station. It will expand its coverage, which now reaches 90% of homes and businesses, to 100%.

Powerco's $55.1 million March year profit was in line with analysts' expectations and up from a $38.1 million profit a year ago.

Powerco's two largest shareholders, New Plymouth District Council with 38.1% and Taranaki Electricity Trust with 11.8%, put their stakes up for sale. Powerco has confirmed it is in merger or acquisition talks with Auckland's Vector and NGC.

The Reserve Bank raised its official cash rate by a quarter-of-a-percentage point yesterday and warned there could be more to come as inflation pressures showed few signs of easing.

ANZ Bank New Zealand contributed a net profit of $A227 million ($264 million to the banking group's overall $A1.4 billion March first half gain. The New Zealand result included a $A150 million profit from four months' ownership of National Bank.

Television New Zealand is closing down its satellite transmission business, saying a global capacity glut had rendered the unit uneconomic.

H&G, the investment vehicle of the Cushing family, is offering $1.25 a share to take its stake in Rural Equities, manager of the New Zealand Rural Property Trust, to 50.1%. H&G already owns 25.3% and controls a further 9.3%.

Goldman Sachs JB Were completed a $74 million capital raising from 900 investors for its Hauraki Private Equity No 2 fund. The first fund raised $22 million from 300 investors.

Calan Healthcare Property Trust said it was negotiating a sale of its 20.7% stake in Ascot Hospital & Clinics, saying it was non-core.

A Ferrier Hodgson report said SES Holdings' 40c a share clean-up bid for Trans Tasman Properties undervalued the shares by 10-17c. The company's independent directors advised shareholders not to accept the offer.

Lowes, the US' second biggest home improvement chain with 950 stores, will stock Fisher & Paykel Appliances' goods, expanding its US coverage by about 40%. The coup allowed the company to shrug off a decision by Harvey Norman to drop the goods in Australia and New Zealand.

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