NZ economy grows as dairy shrugs off drought doldrums, pressure mounts for RBNZ rate hike

NZ economy grows as dairy shrugs off drought doldrums, pressure mounts for RBNZ rate hike
By Paul McBeth Dec. 19 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand’s economy grew at its fastest quarterly pace in almost four years, led by a booming dairy sector and as companies prepare for more growth in 2014, adding to the prospects for a hike in interest rates in the first quarter. Gross domestic product grew 1.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted $37.99 billion in the three months ended Sept 30, from a revised pace of 0.3 percent growth in the June quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand. That was the biggest expansion since December 2009, and...