The SME Stream

Another swathe of Government agency job cuts and public sector reform.  Finance Minister Nicola Willis says they want to return the public servant headcount to 1% of the population by mid-2029, culling about 8,700 jobs.  Government agency operating budgets will again be reduced – 2% now, increasing over following years.  Willis says they will also thin out the ministries, poin...

The services sector continues to contract.  The latest Services Index rose 2.7 points to 48.9 – with anything below 50 signalling contraction.  New orders was the only category in expansion, sitting at 51.2, while employment remained negative for the 29th consecutive month.   BusinessNZ Advocacy Director Catherine Beard told Mike Hosking the figures are the result of the fuel...

New Zealanders owe 9.5billion dollars in overdue tax, with small business owners and the self-employed most likely to get behind. Director of Future Focused Accountants, Catriona Knapp, joins Nadine to explain what can go wrong if you don't get on top of your tax obligations and why it's better to face the debt head-on than bury your head in the sand.  With the IRD cracking down on collecting...

Artificial intelligence is being sold to us as the future.   Faster, smarter, more efficient, maybe even world changing.  But as a handful of tech companies race to build ever more powerful AI, there are growing questions about secrecy, exploitation, and the extraordinary concentration of power behind the scenes.  Journalist Karen Hao has spent years reporting on Open...

The New Zealand First leader says they'll be telling the National Australia Bank we want our bank back - as he lays out plans for the Government to buy BNZ. The party will campaign on the purchase - after its sale in 1992 - and merging it with Kiwibank to create a National Bank of New Zealand.  Winston Peters told Mike Hosking that the bank may not be for sale, but they'll make sure it is. He...

The ads we see on social media promise us a great many things, but how many of them are as good as they seem?  Ed McKnight was recently served an ad on Facebook promising rental investment with great returns that set off a few alarms.  He joined Jack Tame to break down the ad and explain the concerning signs to look for if you spot an investment ad that seems too good to be true.  L...

BusinessDesk's Riley Kennedy discusses Synlait's Leadership Reset.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Craigs Investment Partner's Andrew Ede discusses how global interest rates continue to shape NZ's rates outlook. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Synlait board seeks a seventh CEO in 5 years and an independent director. Will Air NZ need a cap raise? Cerebras soars almost 70% on Nasdaq listing. / See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We need to talk about what Chris Hipkins has said about immigration. First of all, Labour can frankly shut up accusing the Nats of anti-migrant rhetoric because this is a party that hasn’t got a leg to stand on when it comes to migration.  This is the party - and some of the very same people are still there - that campaigned on reducing immigration by up to 30,000 people in 2017, produc...

Nicola Willis talks Kiwibank, immigration plans and Kiwisaver changes.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The NZ First leader and former Deputy PM is his normal combative self when it comes to NZF propaganda, TPM, and the age of eligibility for National Super. However, he has praise for Judith Collins and a convenient memory lapse when it comes to 2017. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The real barrier isn’t the tech falling over, it’s our hesitation, low trust and fear of getting it wrong. Peter Griffin - The Business of Tech Podcast.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This has been pressuring local interest rates higher. Market pricing for RBNZ has climbed up from about a 30% chance of a hike in May to just under 50%.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro are among the weight-loss drugs that more people are taking - but questions have been raised about their economic impacts. These drugs will also have an impact on other sectors, including healthcare and food, and research is still ongoing.  Fisher Funds expert Sam Dickie explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

BusinessDesk's Riley Kennedy tells Herald NOW just how much our red meat industry is benefiting from the US supply shortage.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As business owners, you know how hard it is keeping up with your business, let alone the news. Join Wilhelmina O'Keeffe each week as she gives you a rundown of the biggest stories that could impact your business, so you can make informed decisions with expert advice.   This week, the start of the budget bread crumbs are being laid, changes to our fuel response plan, and the Middle East c...

In Leaders Getting Coffee episode 62, our guest is Caroline Harvie-Teare, who is the CEO of Venues Otautahi in Christchurch, home of the new One New Zealand Stadium. She started life as a farm girl,but moved to the city as a youngster and became a heart and soul champion for the city of Christchurch. The farm girl lingered though as her passion for horses took her to eventing success. That start r...

The Opportunity Party is attracting growing support from young tech professionals, scientists, and startup founders, demanding bolder, more evidence‑based leadership. That’s according to Opportunity party leader Qiulae Wong, the businesswoman, climate leader and mother who will lead the party into the election in a bid to crest the 5% popular vote threshold needed to see the party in a posit...

On paper, New Zealand Super is one of the simplest parts of our welfare system.  Most people become eligible at 65, it’s not means tested, and for decades it’s been treated as a kind of social contract: work hard, reach retirement, and the state will be there. But that contract is under growing pressure. As our population ages and governments look for ways to contain long-term cos...

Westpac's Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold discusses the latest economic data and what the Australian Budget means. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NZ First leader Winston Peters says NZ's retirement age is not a problem that needs to be fixed. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Prime Minister ponders further lamb tariffs in the US, whether climate polluters are being let off the hook, whether Labour can win without TPM, Judith Collins' valedictory, and the fuel price crisis.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shoppers are still turning up and backing local where they can, while retailers juggle rising costs. But how long can they absorb the pain? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Forsyth Barr's Mark Richardson gives a crash course on how currency exchange rates impact returns on your investments. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.