Today's latest news

NZ house sale profits in 2025: Who enjoyed the biggest gains and the biggest losses

Research shows the level of pain in the market has quadrupled.

Nick Leggett: Can emerging infrastructure bipartisanship survive an election campaign?

Research shows a stable project pipeline could save $2.3b to $4.7b every year.

13 ways to make sure your holiday leaves you healthier and happier

Telegraph: How to ensure you have a restorative break these holidays.

Pipe dream: Will Rotorua ever have a hydroslide again?

The mayor has made it her mission to restore a feature of her youth to the city.

'Come home': Family vintage tractor returns to original owner

Waikato farmer Neil Dalgety's tractor tale was a popular read on The Country in 2025.

Teen golf star targets higher honours after winning amateur championship

Chloe So is the New Zealand Women’s Amateur Golf Champion.

'Really excited': Waikato farming family's hazelnut success

This story about the Scott family's adventures in hazelnuts was very popular in 2025.

Morning quiz: What is the primary purpose of the comb on a chicken's head?

Test your brains with the Herald's morning quiz.

Letters: Trade reality check - why India, not Luxon, is likely to gain most

OPINION: When India makes concessions to our dairy products, we will be on a win.

Year in Review: Upokongaro - where herons roost and gin wins gold

Kem Ormond's story about small-batch distillery Papaiti Gin was a big read in June 2025.

Three workplace trends for 2026

Flexibility is now a baseline expectation, an employment expert says.

Pastures Past: Boar attacks boat in 1937

This true fishing story was one of the most read editions of Pastures Past in 2025.

Bearing witness: Reporter logs 20 years covering crime, courage and consequence

Anna Leask marks 20 years covering New Zealand’s most haunting cases and events.

‘Counting every day’: The soldier who spent more than a year on the front line

New York Times: Sergeant Serhii Tyschenko says, 'I honestly don’t know how I coped'.

Revealed: The urgent message from Minister Nicole McKee’s office before her alcohol policy u-turn

McKee initially supported tighter off-licence liquor sale hours, but then changed her mind

Jamie McKay: Winston, FTAs and farm votes – what’s really at stake in 2026

OPINION: One thing you can say about Luxon’s Lot is they are farmer-friendly.

2025 road toll on track for historic low amid tougher policing and safer roads

This year's total of 269 deaths as of last night is down 8% on 2024.

2025 in review: This is your teen’s brain on phones and social media

New studies have shed light on the risks of early smartphone access and heavy screen use.

Editorial: How to say no without guilt when culture and burnout collide

OPINION: A University of Auckland survey found nearly 90% had experienced burnout.

East v west: The Coromandel property divide driving $8.5m beach sales

In 2024, 74% of Coromandel buyers came from outside the peninsula.

The wondrous, short-lived dream of the MVP1 toilet

A shared vision to end poverty has fractured. The fate of one project shows the fallout.

Wild weather: 'District-wide' power outage as storm strikes

An active low-pressure system has caused chaos across NZ.

NZ's cheapest beach towns: Where to find a bach for less than $500,000

OneRoof data identifies the coastal suburbs with the most affordable properties.

'Complicating the response': Vegetation fire breaks out near Ardmore Airport

Fire and Emergency first received the call about 6pm.

Bondi Beach attack hero says he wanted to protect 'innocent people'

Fruit seller Ahmed al Ahmed went viral for wresting a gun from one of the assailants.

Market close: NZ sharemarket flat post-Christmas

Small-cap stocks stole the limelight in the light holiday trading.

Teen drink-driver who caused five car crash with his Mercedes fails appeal

Kekeli Nanedo argued he should have avoided conviction due to the deportation risk.

How Chloé Zhao made the year’s most powerful film

Washington Post: The Hamnet director asks big questions in the emotional film.

Croc attack: Dad bashed at playground over kid's shoes

He was sentenced to 150 hours' community work and two years' supervision.

'Protect Ōkareka now, before it’s too late': United front against lake pest

Warranted officers and volunteers will staff the main Lake Ōkareka boat ramp.

Waterspout forms off popular Hawke’s Bay holiday beach

The waterspout formed offshore between Waimārama Beach and Bare Island.

Huge response as hosts hand over the reins of Napier community Christmas dinner

'I’m here for Jim and Joanne. I needed a kick up the bum and they gave it to me.'

Wendy’s namesake says dad later apologised for naming burger chain after her

Wendy Thomas Morse says she felt pressured growing up as the chain's mascot.

Fire crews attend sites of property damage as strong winds buffet Auckland

Fire crews removed debris from roads as strong winds buffeted Auckland. Video / Jason Dorday

Watch: Waterspout touches down off Waimārama Beach, Hawke's Bay

Video shows the rare moment near Bare Island during stormy weather at the popular Hawke's Bay beach. Video / Supplied

MetService severe weather update: Monday 29 December

MetService severe weather update: Monday 29 December. Video / MetService

Brave beauty of NZ racing retires with nothing left to prove

La Crique won two Group 1 races and over $2.1m in stakes

Deadly rail line: 13 killed, 98 hurt as Mexico train derails in Oaxaca

The Oaxaca rail line was opened in 2023 as a flagship project.

Summer Questions: 'Encouraging momentum building' – Intrepid Travel NZ's Simon Mckearney

Simon Mckearney talks optimism, challenges and the key issue for the 2026 election.

Afternoon quiz: How long did the Trojan War last?

Test your brains with the Herald's afternoon quiz.

Have you seen Ella? Police search for missing person

Ella was last seen on Saturday, December 27.

Explainer: What to know about the Ukraine talks, and sticking points

There was no immediate breakthrough with negotiations on the war to continue in January.

Covid-19 outbreak shuts Gore Hospital to new patients and visitors

Six patients have tested positive for Covid-19 at Gore Hospital.

'Millions of dollars': Farmers rejoice as rain hits parched Hawke's Bay paddocks

The stress reliever that Hawke's Bay farmers needed has arrived.

North Korea tests cruise missiles in show of 'combat readiness'

Kim Jong Un watched the missiles fly for more than two hours over the sea.

Power rankings: New Zealand’s top sporting schools of 2025 revealed

Which school can claim to be the country’s biggest sporting powerhouse?

The biggest mistakes Kiwis make when booking a South Pacific holiday

Whether its time difference or the wrong season, we keep falling into the same pitfalls.

NZ Herald Afternoon Headlines | Monday, December 29, 2025

Afternoon Headlines | Much of country under weather watch and student job market improving overall | Monday, December 29, 2025

Fireworks and bands ready to rock Hawke’s Bay on New Year’s Eve

The occasion was once dominated by disorder in the streets, but is now a family night out.

'Our goal was to save the Queen': Owner puts Lakeland Queen business on market

Owner Damon Hagaman spent $2.5m restoring the Lakeland Queen and its jetty.

Quakers Hill stabbings: Man charged with murder of two people in home

Police say the alleged killer is the woman's former partner.

The most bizarre moments from the tennis ‘Battle of the Sexes’

Aryna Sabalenka’s match against Nick Kyrgios in Dubai threw up plenty of strange scenes.

I left a plastic water bottle in a hot car - is it safe to drink?

New York Times: Experts explain some of the potential risks.

All Blacks player ratings for 2025: Every performance assessed

Who was the best-performing All Black in 2025?

Christmas Day pup marks start of sea lion breeding season on Otago coast

Tui's pup continues the legacy of Mum, who sparked mainland breeding in 1993.

Police hand sex offender prison death to Coroner 400 days after body found in cell

Kingi Hemi was serving six years in Ngawha Prison for attacks on children.

Herald Summer Premium quiz: What famous landmark is on the top of Mt Corcovado?

Our 20-question challenge released at 12pm over Christmas and New Year’s.

2026 Calendar: Public holidays, long weekends and all you need to plan your year

A resource to help you figure out how to maximise your annual leave in 2026.

Festival delays opening, holiday plans disrupted as upgraded weather warnings cloak NZ

MetService has issued orange rain and wind warnings for much of the country.

Trump says it will be clear within 'weeks' if Ukraine war can end

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met Trump at Mar-a-Lago, Florida.

Danish postal service to send final letter

PostNord service will focus on parcels after digital economy led to drop in letter use.

Family's human heat circle saves life of lost elderly hiker wearing only shorts and singlet

The 80-year-old tramper was found collapsed on the Kauaeranga Valley track.

NZ’s biggest leaky build: Judge intervenes in $240m apartment fix fiasco

Homeowners were told levies won't fund the repairs and 'external finance' is now required.

'You’re never too old': Founders share their best start-up advice of 2025

Reporter Tom Raynel spoke with 52 founders nationwide during 2025.

2025 Herald entertainment quiz: Test your movie, TV and celebrity knowledge

How well do you remember the stories everyone was streaming and sharing?

Skier glides down Mt Etna as volcano erupts in the background

The northeast crater is erupting strongly for the first time in 28 years.

Fans urge Brooklyn and Nicola to make peace with Beckhams as feud plays out online

Reports claim the family have not spoken for more than a year as tensions rise.

The married scientists torn apart by a Covid bioweapon theory

NYT: Husband still searching for scientist wife who vanished into Covid lab leak storm.