NZ business confidence sours in December quarter on Labour govt jitters

NZ business confidence sours in December quarter on Labour govt jitters
Paul McBeth
By Paul McBeth Jan. 16 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand firms turned pessimistic about the country's economic fortunes in the December quarter for the first time in more than two years, with the formation of a Labour-led government and its policy plans spooking businesses.  A seasonally adjusted net 11 percent of firms surveyed in the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research's quarterly survey of business opinion expect economic conditions to deteriorate in the first half of this year, turning negative for the first time since September 201...