Best of Business

Boeing's chief executive Dave Calhoun was questioned by members of the US Senate over the various safety issues and incidents impacting the company. Calhoun was quick to apologise to the impacted victims and their families, following a turbulent year for the business. US correspondent Dan Mitchinson says this won't be the last of the high-profile investigations against Boeing.  LISTEN ABOVE   See...

Australia's Reserve Bank has left the OCR unchanged at 4.35 percent after a lengthy deliberation process. The Bank has been waging a long-term battle against inflation, as residents grapple with the ongoing cost of living crisis. HSBC CEO Paul Bloxham warns the RBA could resort to another rate hike in the coming months - depending on how things shake out. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener f...

Leading kiwifruit producer Zespri has launched a global campaign encouraging people to eat better in order to tackle health challenges around the world. The campaign has a focus of improving global health outcomes by encouraging people to swap out one unhealthy food for a serving of fresh fruit or vegetables everyday. The Country's Jamie Mackay is hopeful this scheme will work. LISTEN ABOVE See om...

Air New Zealand has made moves to boost their travel capacity into Japan and added an additional 30,000 seats to its Tokyo route between November and March. CEO Greg Foran explained that Japan represents an important visitor market for New Zealand's tourism sector. Infometrics principal economist Brad Olsen says Japan is a top destination among Kiwi travellers, with 66 percent of people wanting to...

The end of buy now, pay later provider Laybuy is being described as sad by experts. The company has been put into receivership and services have been suspended.  Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young says the sector has been impacted by decreased spending and reduced consumer confidence. "We are in a really difficult environment in terms of retail... people just don't have the money in their wal...

There's no reprieve for Australian borrowers just yet, as the Reserve Bank decided to leave rates on hold. Australia's Official Cash Rate was held steady at 4.35 percent, in line with expectations from economists. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says people are screaming for relief - but the Bank is determined to bring inflation down. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy infor...

How is the economy holding up, what on earth is happening on Thorndon Quay, and how do councils properly engage with local businesses? Those were the questions for the Business Panel this week, consisting of Porirua mayor Anita Baker and The Woolstore executive director Paul Robinson.  The pair joined Nick Mills to discuss all things business in Wellington.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listene...

Food inflation has eased to the lowest level since September 2018, according to new data. A report by Stats NZ says food prices fell 0.2 percent in May on the month before, to be 0.2 percent higher than a year ago - the lowest annual increase in over five years. Devon Funds Management Head of Retail Greg Smith says this comes as petrol prices are also dropping, but consumers shouldn't get too exci...

Prime Minister Chris Luxon aims to spend the next few days in Japan, boosting international business opportunities.  Japan is the world's fourth largest economy, and New Zealand's fourth largest export destination. Otago University international relations professor Robert Patman says Japan is potentially a very important economic partner for us. "We are seeing steadily improving trade with them as...

Christopher Luxon is on the ground in Japan, but his business delegation won't be touching down for another day. The Prime Minister's plane has broken down yet again, this time while refuelling in Papua New Guinea. Luxon's been forced to fly commercial to Tokyo, while the business leaders, officials and others in his delegation are travelling to Brisbane and then on to Japan today. ZB political ed...

There's hope the PM's trip to Japan could bring more investment opportunities to New Zealand. Chris Luxon, a high-ranking business delegation, and travelling media left for Tokyo this morning on the Defence Force 757. NZ Herald political editor Claire Trevett says the Prime Minister curated his the delegate list to what he's calling the A-team. "He's taking the heads of Air New Zealand, the ANZ Ch...

Apple has made a plunge into the AI universe through its new offering: Apple Intelligence. The tech giant revealed how it planned to pair up with OpenAI in order to integrate AI into its devices and software. Fisher Funds expert Sam Dickie explained this development further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Fitch ratings agency is casting doubts on New Zealand's economic future. The agency is considering bringing down the nation's rating, amid concerns surrounding increased debt and low immigration flow. NZ Herald Business editor-at-large Liam Dann unpacks the implications of this news.  LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government aims to reduce the nation's gender pay gap through the development of a voluntary calculation tool. Current figures show the gap currently sits at 8.6 per cent - and has remained persistent at around 9 percent from 2018. Acting Minister for Women Louise Upston says businesses need a consistent and simple tool to measure their pay gaps, and then develop solutions. "We think this is a...

The Retirement Commissioner has released a list of proposed changes to improve the KiwiSaver scheme. The list suggested the default rate for KiwiSaver contributions needs to rise to 4 percent, with employers being required to match that level. However, the Commission disagreed that KiwiSaver should be compulsory. Retirement Commission policy lead Michelle Rayer says 90 percent of wage and salary e...

New figures showed the UK economy experienced no growth in April. The region's GDP was flat for an entire month, off the back of a 0.4 percent bump in March. UK correspondent Gavin Grey says this dip will be a problem for the Conservative Party ahead of the election. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An optimistic update from Tower Insurance, as the company increased its profit expectations. This is the third projected profit upgrade for the company - a significant turnaround following a chaotic 2024. Milford Asset Management's Michael Luke explains how the company's new strategic direction helped boost these numbers. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rural communities are elated to see their repeated concerns being heard. The Finance Minister has asked the Finance and Expenditure and Primary Production Committees to lead a joint inquiry into rural banking. Federated Farmers says rural New Zealanders are facing huge financial pressures - worsened by unfair interest rates. Spokesperson Richard McIntyre says it's causing farmers to sell up. "It's...

Sole trader confidence in the government's slipped after the announcement of the fortnightly $20 tax credit.   Accountancy service Hnry's most recent report reveals 44% think they'll be worse off with the government's promises.   They've come up with six policies they would support instead, such as lower tax rates for high demand professions.   CEO James Fuller says sole traders aren't looking for...

The owners of toy company Zuru have been named New Zealand's wealthiest people, the first change to the top spot in 20 years. This year's NBR Rich List saw Mat and Nick Mowbray bump packaging, property and investment magnate Graeme Hart from number one. NBR co-editor Hamish McNicol says the pair have openly planned to become the next Google or Tesla. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for pr...

Prime Minister Chris Luxon has revealed Chinese Premier Li Qiang will visit New Zealand later this week.  This will be the first significant visit by one of the nation's largest trading partners in over seven years. NZME business commentator Fran O'Sullivan explains what this visit means for the future of business optimism regarding New Zealand.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privac...

Air New Zealand has stopped flights between Auckland and New Caledonia's Nouméa for the next few months. The airline will look to resume flights at the end of September. The decision comes amid ongoing uncertainty in the island nation following political unrest. House of Travel chief operating officer Brent Thomas says it isn't a major destination for New Zealanders. "Having said that, there'll be...

A debate about the unwritten rules of café etiquette has surfaced after an incident in Napier. Reporter Mark Story was asked to leave Napier café Smiths, after being told he hadn't spent enough to stay longer than an hour. Kiwi restaurateur Martin Bosley says different establishments are likely to have different house rules. "I think it's common sense... if the place is empty, if there's no one ar...

I'm starting to get a little bit nervous about whether we are ever going to be able to attract overseas investors back into our oil and gas industry. I mean, you think about it - the world has known since October last year that we were back open for business, because that’s when the coalition Government won the election. From there, it was clear that all three parties wanted to reverse the oil and...

The Trade Minister says it's important for the nation to strengthen its economic relationship with China. Earlier today, Prime Minister Luxon announced Chinese Premier Li Qiang will visit New Zealand later this week.  Minister Todd McClay says since the change in Government, there's been an increase in contact and engagement with China. "$40 billion worth of two-way trade, that's very important fo...