RESEND: NZ councils in good financial health with debt costs dropping but future funding still a concern

Tue, 10 Feb 2015

(Fixes name of LGNZ CEO Malcolm Alexander in last paragraph) By Fiona Rotherham Feb. 10 (BusinessDesk) - A funding review of New Zealand local councils shows debt is less than forecast and all are operating within their financial covenants. Analysis by the Local Government Funding Agency showed that during 2014, the sector’s total gross debt increased by 6.8 percent to $10.8 billion. But only 30 of the country’s 78 councils increased their debt during the year while 30 decreased debt levels. Excluding Auckland Council, which has the h...

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