PM Edition: Top 10 Business Articles on LiveNews.co.nz for August 3, 2026 – Full Text

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Source: University of Auckland

Friday, July 31, 2026

When a new drug shows a 30 to 60 percent cure rate in laboratory models of cancer, there’s cause for excitement.

A New Zealand team has carried out early experiments on a new cancer drug that displays that level of promise.

The research is led by University of Auckland Associate Professors Jeff Smaill and Adam Patterson from the Department of Cancer Sciences, and Malaghan Institute Professor Ian Hermans.

“It’s early days, but we’re seeing long-term eradication of cancer in lab experiments using this new drug,” says Smaill.

“It’s exciting to see that once the cancer is cured, if we try to reintroduce the same type of cancer, it won’t establish a second time.

“So this treatment looks promising in terms of preventing relapse.”

The drug gives a unique boost to the body’s immune defences, mobilising them inside tumours to help fight cancer, says Patterson.

While the new treatment is currently being targeted at lung cancer, it could be used to increase the chances of surviving many types of cancer, Patterson says.

To further develop the drug, the team has just launched a new company, Stave Therapeutics, which has attracted investment from Unruly Partners.

The scientists hope to optimise the drug’s potential, before launching world-first clinical trials with cancer patients within the next two years.

Over the past 15 years, immunotherapy drugs have been created that help treat about 20 different cancers. However, they are only effective long-term for about 20 to 25 percent of lung cancer patients and for about 5 to 15 percent of patients with other major types of cancer.

Smaill says the team is “like a dog with a bone”, relentlessly looking for ways to develop treatments that are more effective for more patients.

Their innovative approach involves turning ‘cold tumours’, which few immune cells have infiltrated, into ‘hot tumours’, which are inflamed by armies of immune cells attacking the cancer, says Hermans.

“We’ve been working on a way to stimulate immune cells in the tumour, even if there are very few of them.

“We want to get them to release the signalling molecules that make a tumour hotter, more inflamed, that attract immune cell penetration into the tumour,” says Hermans.

Trials in laboratory models that don’t respond to existing immunotherapy drugs have been promising, says Patterson.

They show the new drug stimulates the body’s immune defences and increases the number of T cells entering the tumour to fight cancer cells.

Stronger immune responses are activated when the new compound is used in combination with existing immunotherapy drugs that stop cancers turning off the body’s immune defences, says Patterson.

“We think converting tumours from cold to hot is going to be the real way to get immunotherapy working better.

“If we can achieve this, we can make a big impact on treating a lot of different cancers,” Patterson says.

Over the past 30 years at the University’s Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre, Smaill and Patterson have created six new cancer drugs that have reached the stage of clinical trials.

Smaill worked with pharmaceutical company Pfizer to discover dacomitinib, a lung cancer treatment that gained global approval for patient use in 2018.

Two new drugs the pair have developed to treat a range of cancers are undergoing phase one clinical trials in Europe and China. They developed a third cancer drug, tarloxotinib, which has advanced to phase two clinical trials in the United States, Australia, Canada and Hong Kong.

In 2021, funding from Maurice Wilkins Centre helped launch their latest research, followed by a $1.2 million Health Research Council grant. Last year the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment granted more than $5 million over three years for the project. Cancer Society Auckland Northland has also provided significant funding supporting Smaill and Patterson’s research.

Over the next 18 months, Stave Therapeutics plans to test hundreds of compounds to optimise the treatment’s potency and reduce potential side effects.

“It’s still early days, but we’re pretty amped up about this one,” says Smaill.

“When you’re designing new molecules the universe has never seen before and you’re controlling the chemical structure to make things happen in ways you can predict, it’s a real buzz.

“There’s always a rush when you go: We’ve doubled the potency, or we’ve increased the selectivity, or we’re seeing a 60 percent cure rate in our lab experiments.”

Source: Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF)

• Afghan refugees in Pakistan are living under constant fear of detention, loss of livelihood, and deportation
• The Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan’s (IFRP’s) impact on refugees’ access to healthcare is concerning, as refugees are delaying or foregoing medical care out of fear of arrest
• MSF urges the Government of Pakistan to ensure refugees are not forcibly returned to Afghanistan under the IFRP and further urges countries hosting Afghan refugees to halt all involuntary returns to Afghanistan.

30 July 2026 – Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors without Borders (MSF) urges the Government of Pakistan to ensure refugees are not forcibly returned to Afghanistan under the Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan (IFRP) and to establish formal exemptions for individuals with international protection needs.

MSF is deeply concerned about the IFRP’s impact on refugees’ access to healthcare. Refugees told MSF teams they are delaying or foregoing medical care out of fear of arrest and to avoid documentation checks at health facilities. This has led to preventable health issues, including cases of malnutrition and pregnancy complications.

MSF spoke with Najib*, an Afghan refugee arrested during a police raid on his home, despite showing his Proof of Registration (PoR) card.

“My wife was three months pregnant when the police took me. When I was released and came home the next day, she was still out of her mind. She told me that she had started bleeding very heavily because of stress and deep sadness. My mind was filled with so many images: the picture of the arrest, the trauma, the mental anguish from the previous night—everything was racing through my brain. But, just to save my wife’s life, I acted despite the fear. I finally decided I had to go to the hospital, but I was terrified that they would arrest me again. I rushed her to the doctor, but we were too late. My wife had already had a miscarriage.”

The policy has undermined people’s ability to provide for their families, as people lose work and income amid fears of arrest and deportation. In early 2026, MSF ran mobile clinics for communities with no access to healthcare in Quetta, Balochistan, and identified a high burden of acute malnutrition among children seeking care, with 33.3% meeting the criteria for global acute malnutrition. Among those screened, 7.6 percent had severe acute malnutrition and 25.7 percent had moderate acute malnutrition. Nearly 90 percent of malnourished patients were Afghan refugees, most of them women and children.

The Government of Pakistan began implementing the IFRP in November 2023, initially targeting undocumented Afghan nationals and later extending to documented refugees holding Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) or Proof of Registration (PoR)—many of whom had lived in the country since 1979. In a July 10, 2026 directive, Pakistan authorities ordered the immediate arrest and accelerated deportation of all Afghan nationals without a valid visa.

“Pakistan has hosted Afghan refugees for over 45 years despite limited international support,” says den Hartogh. “Yet Afghan refugees live under constant fear of arrest, detention, eviction, loss of livelihood, and deportation. This makes it unlikely that many of the returns to Afghanistan are truly voluntary”. Over 2.5 million Afghans have returned to Afghanistan under the IFRP so far, many involuntarily, according to UNHCR. The UN recently identified over 70,000 Afghan refugees at imminent risk if returned. “It is critical that individuals with protection needs are not deported and that returns are voluntary, safe, and dignified,” says den Hartogh.

Between 2023 and 2026, roughly 6 million Afghans returned from Iran and Pakistan, straining Afghanistan’s fragile healthcare system. The systematic erasure of women and girls from public life, sweeping U.S aid cuts and wider funding declines, an overstretched health system, and a deepening economic crisis compound the challenges returnees face to reintegrate.

MSF assessments of informal returnee settlements in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province in October 2025 and April 2026 found a lack of basic healthcare, inadequate shelter, undernutrition, and poor sanitation—increasing outbreak risk.

MSF urges countries hosting Afghan refugees to halt all involuntary returns to Afghanistan and ensure return processes do not undermine the protection and safety of refugees.

“We urge the Government of Pakistan to renew its long-standing solidarity with refugees and formally adopt mechanisms to identify and protect those at risk of harm upon return,” says Marko den Hartogh, MSF’s Head of Mission in Pakistan. “This must include women and girls, children, the elderly, people with disabilities, those needing urgent or long-term medical care, refugees awaiting resettlement, and others at heightened risk of marginalization, discrimination, or persecution.”

*Name changed to protect confidentiality and privacy

MSF is an international, medical, humanitarian organisation that delivers medical care to people in need, regardless of their origin, religion, or political affiliation. MSF Australia was established in 1995 and is one of 24 international MSF sections committed to delivering medical humanitarian assistance to people in crisis. Every year more than 120 Australians and New Zealanders go on assignment with Médecins Sans Frontières working as: doctors, midwives, psychologists, laboratory technicians, human resource/finance coordinators, pharmacists, mental health specialists and logisticians. MSF delivers medical care based on need alone and operates independently of government, religion or economic influence and irrespective of race, religion or gender. For more information visit msf.org.au

Source: Mindful Money

KiwiSaver Investment in “Companies of Concern” Climbs to $11.1 Billion, even as Kiwis invest for positive outcomes at home

New analysis of KiwiSaver portfolio holdings to March 2026 shows New Zealanders’ retirement savings are increasingly split between rapidly growing investment in clean energy leaders and rising exposure to fossil fuel expansion, human rights violations, environmental harm and nuclear weapons production.

The best way to verify ethical claims made by KiwiSaver funds is not to take fund managers at their word, since most claim to invest responsibly,  but to track where the money actually goes. Mindful Money’s latest analysis, covering portfolio holdings across 417 funds to the end of March 2026, does exactly that, tracing $143 billion of KiwiSaver investment down to the specific companies.

Barry Coates, co-CEO of Mindful Money explained: “The public have little trust in the claims of ethical, ESG or responsible investment practices by their KiwiSaver providers. This report adds up investments across all of the KiwiSaver funds and finds the public are justified in being sceptical about the claims.” 

“KiwiSaver members can find out the real story of where their money goes by visiting Mindful Money. We are a charity that provides that information for free.”

The good and the bad

The results of the data analysis show a mixed picture. On one hand, New Zealanders’ KiwiSaver funds are increasingly backing the companies driving the country’s shift to clean energy and climate resilience.

Five of the six companies receiving the largest KiwiSaver investment are New Zealand businesses delivering positive outcomes: Contact Energy, Meridian Energy, Mercury Energy, Kāinga Ora and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare. That is a strong endorsement, by our KiwiSaver providers, of the companies building the infrastructure the country needs.

Barry Coates said: “Our retirement savings can make a huge contribution towards responding to our urgent challenges. After years of ignoring this agenda, some of the leading KiwiSaver fund managers are at last investing for the common good.”

On the other hand, total KiwiSaver investment in the issues that New Zealanders consistently say they want their investments to avoid has now reached $11.1 billion. This is equivalent to 7.8% of the total KiwiSaver fund pool. That is a significant sum of Kiwis’ hard-earned retirement savings invested in companies whose practices most New Zealanders want to avoid.

Where the money is going

Fossil fuel production remains the largest single category of concern, with $5.18 billion invested (3.62% of total KiwiSaver funds), a rise of 30% over the past six months. This includes growing investment in major oil, gas and coal producers still expanding production rather than transitioning away from fossil fuels, including BHP, Shell, ConocoPhillips, Santos and Woodside. Increases in this category over the period were driven particularly by Milford, ANZ and Fisher Funds increasing their holdings, while Aurora reduced its exposure. War in Ukraine and Iran has spiked oil and gas prices, but the long term future is for rapid declines in fossil fuel production.

Investment in companies linked to human rights violations sits close behind, at $3.76 billion (2.63%). A significant driver has been increased investment in Rio Tinto, a company with a long record of harm to local communities, indigenous peoples and the environment through its mining operations, and in Thermo Fisher Scientific, which faces ongoing concerns over the use of its products to support surveillance by the Chinese state. Milford, Fisher Funds and ANZ increased their holdings in companies flagged for human rights concerns over the period, while Simplicity and BNZ reduced theirs.

Environmental harm accounted for $1.78 billion (1.25%) of KiwiSaver investment, with notable increases in holdings of Corteva and UPL Ltd, both agrichemical companies whose products, including highly hazardous chemicals and PFAS (“forever chemicals”), pose risks to human health and the environment. ANZ, Mercer and Sharesies increased their exposure to this category, while Milford and MAS reduced theirs.

Animal cruelty investment reached $1.52 billion (1.06%), with increases linked to factory farming giants JBS and Tyson. JBS in particular has drawn international criticism not only for animal welfare practices but for its role in driving deforestation through its supply chains.

Weapons investment totalled $612 million (0.43%) an increase of 15% over the six months to March 2026. After years of declining investment in nuclear, there has been a rise in investments in nuclear weapons production through RTX (formerly Raytheon), Honeywell and Lockheed Martin. Sharesies, InvestNow and Generate increased their holdings of nuclear weapons producers over the period, while AMP, Goalsgetter and MAS reduced theirs.

Social harm, the traditional ethical categories of tobacco, gambling, alcohol and pornography,  remains the smallest category of concern, at $444 million (0.31%). This reflects the fact that these issues are relatively easy for fund managers to define and screen out, and many major KiwiSaver providers have had long-standing policies to exclude them. Surprisingly, there were increases in tobacco producers such as Philip Morris and BAT by Sharesies, Kernel and ANZ. 

Cashing in on global disruption

Taken together, these figures show a widening gap between the outcomes New Zealanders say they want from their KiwiSaver savings and where a meaningful slice of that money is actually invested. Surveys consistently show that human rights violations are the single issue New Zealanders are most concerned about avoiding in their investments, followed closely by weapons and animal cruelty. Yet these are precisely the categories where KiwiSaver providers have made the least progress, and in several cases have gone backwards.

Barry Coates explained: “The latest KiwiSaver investment data shows funds chasing investments in companies profiting from war, environmental damage and harmful company practices. Some Kiwis are fine with making money from the misery of others. But many others aren’t. Now they have the information to make informed choices.” 

The sharp increase in nuclear weapons investment is particularly striking. While most KiwiSaver providers have policies excluding investment in landmines or cluster munitions, far fewer exclude the catastrophic category of nuclear weapons production, despite New Zealand’s long-standing national identity as a nuclear-free country and strong public opposition to nuclear weapons.

Similarly, the increases in fossil fuel investment come at a time when the economic case for renewable energy continues to strengthen. Renewable energy is now the cheapest and most efficient source of new energy generation in most markets, and fossil fuel companies face growing risks of stranded assets as production peaks and then declines globally. 

Barry Coates added: “KiwiSaver providers chasing short-term returns from fossil fuel expansion are taking on financial and climate risks that a genuine transition strategy would avoid.”

A tale of two portfolios

The strong flows into Contact, Meridian, Mercury, Kāinga Ora and Fisher & Paykel show that KiwiSaver providers are capable of directing significant capital toward companies delivering positive impact for New Zealand. Later this year, Mindful Money will launch a major new project, providing free information to the New Zealand public on investments by KiwiSaver funds into companies that generate positive outcomes. 

This investment in supporting the transition to renewable energy, providing affordable housing and supporting healthcare sits uneasily alongside the desperate drive for short term profits at any cost. Mindful Money believes that responsible funds should not sacrifice their principles in the sugar hit from short term profits, driven by policies largely influenced by President Trump – war and conflict, nuclear weapons, fossil fuel disruption and unregulated toxic chemicals.

Individual fund managers show real divergence in their approach. Some, such as Simplicity, BNZ, Aurora and MAS, have reduced their exposure to one or more categories of concern over the period. Others, including Milford, ANZ, Fisher Funds, Mercer, Sharesies, InvestNow and Generate, increased their holdings in at least one category flagged as a concern to the New Zealand public.  

Finding an ethical fund

KiwiSaver members do not have to accept this gap between their values and their investments. A small group of “Mindful Funds” meet Mindful Money’s ethical criteria, combining strong ethical standards with solid financial performance, including funds from Pathfinder Asset Management, Generate, Simplicity, Booster SRI Funds, Harbour Asset Management, MAS and Always Ethical.

Members of the public can check exactly what their own KiwiSaver fund is invested in, and find a fund that better aligns with their values, for free, at mindfulmoney.nz.

About Mindful Money

Mindful Money is an independent New Zealand charity that empowers Kiwis to align their investments with their values, by tracking where KiwiSaver and managed fund money actually goes, and helping members of the public find funds that meet their ethical standards.

Notes: Full data tables and methodology are available on request. Figures are based on Mindful Money’s analysis of reported portfolio holdings for 417 KiwiSaver funds as at March 2026.

Source: Federated Farmers

Federated Farmers is welcoming clarity from the Department of Conservation on the next steps to determine the future of New Zealand’s iconic Molesworth Station.

“The Department of Conversation (DOC) has run a really robust, competitive and fair process to get to this point,” Federated Farmers president Colin Hurst says.

“We congratulate Ngāi Tahu Farming on putting forward a strong business case and being selected as the preferred operator to negotiate for the lease.

“Molesworth is an incredibly special property for all New Zealanders, owned by all New Zealanders, so it’s important whoever takes on the lease is well set up to succeed.”

Hurst says Ngāi Tahu Farming is a credible South Island farming operation with the scale, experience and financial resilience needed to farm a property like Molesworth.

“Ngāi Tahu Farming has a strong balance sheet that would allow them to keep farming through tough years with drought or poor commodity prices,” Hurst says.

“It’s also well placed to run an integrated system with existing finishing farms around North Canterbury – so the decision makes sense from that perspective.”

Hurst says it’s important Molesworth’s core focus remains maintaining a viable pastoral livestock farming operation, as it has been for the last 175 years.

“There also need to be clear expectations set that public access to Molesworth is protected and that there is a commitment to active weed and pest management.”

Source: Woolworths New Zealand

31 July 2026 – Families and collectors across New Zealand are invited to head to their local Woolworths store on Friday 7 August, for an official Disney OOSHIES swap day.

Running from 3PM to 5PM, the swap day gives collectors of all ages the chance to trade duplicate figures, hunt for elusive favorites, and get one step closer to completing their 40-character set.

Since launching on 13 July, the 10th-anniversary Disney OOSHIES collection, featuring beloved characters from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars, has brought joy to households across Aotearoa. The after-school swap day offers a safe, fun, and community focussed space for fans to connect and trade directly with each other.

Woolworths General Manager Brand and Marketing, Abbe Hale, says the enthusiasm from shoppers has been fantastic to see.

“We know how much excitement these Disney OOSHIES have brought to households over the past few weeks! Our stores are at the heart of neighbourhoods, and swap day is a wonderful way to bring local families together, trade duplicate figures, and give everyone a fun boost toward completing their collector boxes.”

Key Event Details:

• Event: Woolworths official Disney OOSHIES Swap Day
• Date: Friday, 7 August 2026
• Time: 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
• Location: Woolworths stores nationwide
• What to bring: Any duplicate Disney OOSHIES you’d like to trade with fellow collectors.

About the Campaign:

Running until 23 August 2026 (while stocks last), Woolworths customers receive one Disney OOSHIE for every $30 spent in-store or online, as well as at FreshChoice and via MILKRUN.

The 2026 lineup celebrates 10 years of OOSHIES with 40 unique characters, including fan favorites from Disney’s Moana, Disney and Pixar’s Toy Story 5, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu.

Made from 97% recycled materials, if customers can’t make the swap day, we encourage them to drop off any unwanted OOSHIES into dedicated in-store recycling bins until 13 September 2026.

For more information, including store locations, and terms and conditions visit woolworths.co.nz/Disney-Ooshies.

About Woolworths New Zealand:

Woolworths New Zealand is one of New Zealand’s largest employers with 21,000 team members across over 185 supermarkets, distribution centres, processing plants and support offices. Each week we serve over three million customers and work with hundreds of food producers and suppliers throughout Aotearoa. We’re committed to delivering New Zealand’s best supermarket experiences for customers and team with more value, innovation and accelerated investment in our stores. We’re proud to give back to the communities we live and work in, and every year we donate several million dollars worth of food, funding and sponsorship to our communities. Woolworths New Zealand is also the franchisor of more than 70 FreshChoice stores, which are locally owned and operated. Woolworths New Zealand is part of Woolworths Group.