Thursday, March 12

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Synlait’s biggest shareholders to vote on $218m rescue package
Business

Synlait’s biggest shareholders to vote on $218m rescue package

Photo: Getty Images Synlait's two biggest shareholders will be able to vote on a $218-million rescue package they are bankrolling at next week's special meeting. Market regulator RegCo dismissed a complaint brought by former chief executive and board member John Penno aiming to prevent the big two shareholders, A2 Milk and Bright Dairy, from voting on the bail-out package. In a statement, Synlait said the support of all shareholders remained essential to safeguard the future of Synlait, and all shareholders were encouraged to exercise their right to vote at the special meeting, schedule for 18 September. Penno brought the action, calling the bail out package a sweetheart deal for Bright Dairy and a2 Milk. The proposed package would give Synlait capital to paid down debt and refinance its...
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: ‘Soft-swinging’ TikTokers share their story in new reality series
World News

The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: ‘Soft-swinging’ TikTokers share their story in new reality series

The cast of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Jessi Ngatikaura, Jennifer Affleck, Mayci Neeley, Taylor Frankie Paul, Mikayla Matthews, Layla Taylor and Demi Engemann. Photo: Disney+ / Fred Hayes Two years ago, a group of rule-breaking Mormon influencers became embroiled in a swinging sex scandal that captivated TikTok - and made international headlines. Mormon influencer Taylor Frankie Paul was at the centre of the controversy, after revealing on livestream that she and her husband, Tate Paul, were getting divorced after "soft-swinging" with her friend group - referring to being intimate outside their marriage, with restrictions. The revelation sent shockwaves through #MomTok, a TikTok community known for sharing content related to motherhood and family life, and implicated seven of Fra...
M&S fashion autumn drop 2024: the best bits to buy this year
Life Style

M&S fashion autumn drop 2024: the best bits to buy this year

If you have looked up in your local M&S recently you will have noticed that there has been a sea change at the once staid retailer. No longer a graveyard of school uniforms and new knickers, their fashion department has lurched forwards and, having seen their new autumn collection — the first of which launches today, it is set on an upwardly chic trajectory. The stats are great (in May, M&S announced pre-tax profits up 41 per cent to £672.5 million, with clothing and home sales up 5.3 per cent) and the clothes, though sometimes lingering in knock-off purgatory, hit every trending point. M&SMaddy Evans, womenswear director (formerly of Topshop), has been credited as the woman behind its stylish renaissance. “We’re trying to focus on modern mainstream — less about age, more about...
Hunter Biden pleads guilty in federal tax case
World News

Hunter Biden pleads guilty in federal tax case

By Jackie Luna for Reuters Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, plead guilty to federal tax-related charges. Photo: AP / Matt Rourke Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, has pleaded guilty to federal tax charges in a surprise move that avoids a potentially embarrassing trial weeks before the US presidential election. Biden had been set to stand trial in a Los Angeles federal courthouse on criminal charges of failing to pay US$1.4 million (NZ$2.29m) in taxes while spending lavishly on drugs, sex workers and luxury items. Instead, he pleaded guilty to all nine counts he faced. Judge Mark Scarsi told Biden he faces up to 17 years in prison and up to US$450,000 in penalties. He set sentencing for 16 December. Defendants who plead guilty in criminal cases typically work ou...
Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei dies, days after boyfriend set her on fire
World News

Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei dies, days after boyfriend set her on fire

By John Wanyama in Eldoret for Reuters Uganda's Rebecca Cheptegei, left, competes in the women's marathon final during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest on 26 August, 2023. Photo: FERENC ISZA / AFP Warning: This story discusses graphic details of violence against women. Ugandan Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei has died, four days after she was doused in petrol and set on fire by her boyfriend in Kenya, in the latest attack on a female athlete in the country. Cheptegei, 33, who competed in the Paris Olympics, suffered burns to more than 75 percent of her body in Sunday's attack, Kenyan and Ugandan media reported. She is the third prominent sportswoman to be killed in Kenya since October 2021. "We have learnt of the sad passing on of our Olympic athlete Rebecca Ch...
Auckland apartment sells for $1m less than it was bought for
Business

Auckland apartment sells for $1m less than it was bought for

An apartment in this building on Remuera Road was sold in 2024 for $1 million less than the seller paid for it in 2018. Photo: Supplied / Google Maps An Auckland property that sold for $300,000 less than the owner paid for it two years ago might have made the news this week - but it is far from the biggest loss sustained by a seller this year. The Māngere East property sold at mortgagee sale for $490,000 but last changed hands for $750,000 in March 2022. But Nick Goodall, the head of research at property value firm CoreLogic, said the biggest loss recorded so far this year was for a Remuera apartment, which sold for $1 million less than it had previously been bought for. It was sold for $5.5m on 12 April, after being bought for $6.5m in March 2018. Goodall said it was a higher-end apart...
Bayesian sinking: Four victims on Mike Lynch yacht died of suffocation, autopsies suggest
World News

Bayesian sinking: Four victims on Mike Lynch yacht died of suffocation, autopsies suggest

The British tech tycoon and six others died when the family's yacht sank off the Italian coast last month. Photo: VesselFinder Initial examinations of four of the people killed when British tech tycoon Mike Lynch's family yacht sank off Sicily last month indicated they had died of suffocation as oxygen ran out on the stricken vessel, judicial sources said on Thursday. Lynch, his daughter Hannah, an onboard cook and four guests died when the Bayesian, a British-flagged 56-metre superyacht, sank during a severe and sudden weather event off the port of Porticello, near Palermo, on 19 August. First results from autopsies on four of the victims - Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy, lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda - suggested that they died from suff...
How much should your KiwiSaver balance be, at your age?
Business

How much should your KiwiSaver balance be, at your age?

Photo: 123RF How does your KiwiSaver balance compare others your age? The retirement savings scheme has become a key part of many New Zealanders' financial lives since it was launched in 2007. There is now about $110.8 billion invested in the scheme. The average balance is $31,828, although that is affected by the large number of people who do not contribute to the scheme. Milford said its average balance was about $79,000. Data from actuaries Melville Jessup Weaver for December 2023 shows that balances generally increased as people became older. Under 17-year-olds had an average balance of $2869. People aged 18 to 25 had an average of $8867. For those aged 26 to 30, the average increased to $17,326. People aged 31 to 35 had an average of $21,096. Those 36 to 40 had an average of $26,829...
Reports Hunter Biden intends to plead guilty in federal tax case
World News

Reports Hunter Biden intends to plead guilty in federal tax case

By Jackie Luna for Reuters Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, intends to plead guilty to federal tax-related charges. Photo: AP / Matt Rourke Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, intends to plead guilty to federal tax-related charges, US television networks have reported - a move that would head off a potentially embarrassing trial shortly before the 5 November presidential election. NBC News, Fox News and CNN reported that the younger Biden would plead guilty in federal court in Los Angeles, where the trial was due to begin on Thursday. His lawyers and the Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He was expected to appear in court at 11am Pacific time (6am NZT). Hunter Biden had previously pleaded not guilty in the criminal case, whi...
UK launches probe into Ticketmaster over Oasis shows
World News

UK launches probe into Ticketmaster over Oasis shows

By Radhika Anilkumar and Catarina Demony, Reuters Some fans ended up paying more than double for the Oasis tickets. Photo: OLI SCARFF Britain's competition watchdog has launched an investigation into Ticketmaster over the sale of Oasis tickets, including the use of "dynamic pricing" to hike the cost to fans at the last minute. Thousands of fans waited long hours in virtual queues last weekend to get their hands on tickets for the British band's reunion shows next summer, only to find that prices had jumped in a "dynamic pricing" scheme. Many thought they would pay the advertised rate of £148.50 (NZ$320) but ended up paying more than double at £355.20 (NZ$765). The Competition and Markets Authority said on Thursday it was scrutinising whether the sale of Oasis tickets by Ticketmaster,...