Air New Zealand emerged as the buyer responsible for a line of 52 million Virgin Australia shares that changed hands, the kiwi airline taking delivery of part of a holding previously held in an equity derivative. Air NZ said its physical shareholding in Virgin – its trans-Tasman alliance partner – rose to 18.49 per cent with an additional derivative exposure of 1.5 per cent. The company’s total relevant interest in Virgin of 19.99 per cent was unchanged from September last year, when it announced the acquisition of an additional 5 per cent stake held by Deutsche Bank. The New Zealand airline was unable to convert the entire holding at the time due to the foreign ownership cap of 49 per cent, a limit that no longer applies after Virgin split into a listed domestic company and an unlisted international business. Andrew Cleary

A rail line needed to link the Wiggins Island coal export terminal at Gladstone to coalmines in the Surat Basin moved a step closer to construction after the Queensland Competition Authority formally approved its development. QR National welcomed the announcement, saying it would allow first railing to occur by mid-2014, with all remaining works to be completed by March 2015. QRN said the QCA’s approval together with the completion of financing arrangements for the Wiggins Island export terminal cleared the way for construction to begin.