Best of Business

A new Westpac report has revealed our tourism is doing well - but could do better. The latest Westpac Economic Tourism bulletin shows while the sector has seen some recovery, businesses will need to adapt to the changing market. Industry Economist Paul Clark told Kate Hawkesby the industry is going to find it increasingly challenging to make a profit. He says while the trajectory of international...

Meta's launch of Threads has left analysts and experts wondering what this new platform will do for the company's bottom line. Threads has generated over 100 million sign ups in less than a week and made Meta's shares jump by 6 percent. Fisher Funds senior portfolio manager Sam Dickie says Threads generated plenty of excitement in the early days, and will likely boost earnings down the line. LISTE...

Cheese prices still remain high- and they may be responsible for inflation being stubbornly high. Stats NZ singled cheese prices out as being one of the culprits responsible for a 6 per cent increase in the Consumers Price Index for the June year. NZ Herald business editor at large Liam Dann says cheese prices are still high despite a fall in GDT auction prices- and demand is clearly high. LISTEN...

Farmers are delighted to see a taxpayer top up towards more ambitious Fonterra climate goals. Fonterra is putting up to $790 million towards halving manufacturing emissions by 2030, and the Government's adding an extra $90 million. Federated Farmers President Wayne Langford says most Kiwis should appreciate these moves to reduce emissions. "I think it'll be a huge step forward. I think Fonterra ar...

Inflation has finally fallen to six percent but how are we looking in the domestic front? Businesses are continuing to struggle with less demand and less spending. But with China's market back open the pressure may start lifting. Business NZ CEO Kirk Hope joined Kate Hawkesby to discuss the topic. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Finance Minister says several factors are continuing to keep inflation historically high. The Consumers Price Index rose six percent in the year to June. That's down on 7.3 percent in the year to June last year, but still well above the Reserve Bank's target range of one to three percent. Grant Robertson told Mike Hosking the price of imported building supplies continues to rise, and severe we...

The Government is putting $90 million dollars towards Fonterra, to halve manufacturing emissions within the next seven years. Fonterra is investing $790 million dollars towards the goal. Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods told Mike Hosking there shouldn't be any economic concerns about climate-friendly policies. She says this is about future proofing the country and getting well paid jobs....

Tonight on The Huddle, Trish Sherson from Sherson Willis PR and Ben Thomas from Ben Thomas PR joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day- and more! Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says the Government's creating a new offence targeting ram raid offending and allowing 12 and 13 year olds to be charged in the youth court. Is there any merit to these changes?  The Consumers Price Ind...

The US earnings season for the June quarter is officially underway. Economists warned of a recession risk in the lead up, but those concerns have since moderated. Milford Asset Management Portfolio Manager Felix Fok says the US economy is facing similar issues to other developed economies- interest rates and moderating cost pressures are on the rise. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for pr...

New Microsoft Teams data reveals 4pm til 6pm is the new workday 'dead zone' for employees. The data shows that employees have maintained their lockdown-era flexibility to control their own hours and more leave the office early to fulfil outside obligations. Massey university Human Resource Management professor says employers stand to benefit from these changes, as some employees return in the even...

There’s no doubt about it; New Zealanders are hard workers. But according to the productivity stats, we work hard and we worked dumb - like good, solid oxen. We put our necks under the yolks and we trudge up and down our respective paddocks, but our output simply doesn't match our input. The Productivity Commission released a report earlier this month and it shows that we work more hours per week...

New Zealand's inflation rate has taken another tumble - dropping from 6.7 percent to 6. Today's 0.7 point drop in the Consumer Price Index represents the largest fall in annual inflation in more than two years. Despite the drop, prices are still increasing at rates not seen since the 1990s. Food prices remain a major driver of the inflation - up more than 12 percent annually. NZ Herald Business Ed...

Most economists are tipping the Consumer Price Index will fall below six percent. It would be for the first time since December 2021. ANZ Economist Henry Russell joined Kate Hawkesby to discuss. LISTEN ABOVE     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An immigration director is slamming the Government after revelations only one person has been approved for the specialist investor visa. The policy launched last September, hoping to bring investors to the country, to boost post-pandemic economic prosperity. Newshub reports the person already lived in New Zealand. Malcolm Pacific Immigration Director David Cooper told Mike Hosking the Government f...

Signs are pointing to a slight slowdown in inflation when Stats NZ releases its latest figures this morning. Economists expect inflation in the year to June to be about 5.9 to 6.1 percent. That's down from 6.7 percent in the year to March, and 7.2 percent in the year to December. ANZ Chief Economist Sharon Zollner told Mike Hosking most price rises are easing. But she says food costs are continuin...

It's thought Countdown's $400 million rebrand is a waste of time, money and poor timing as many Kiwis struggle to pay for their groceries. The supermarket chain will revert back to Woolworths early next year, 12 years after changing to Countdown. Sign changes start next month, along with store upgrades. Massey University Marketing expert, Bodo Lang, told Kate Hawkesby there's a danger the Australi...

Countdown will start changing its signage back to the Woolworths name from next month. The supermarket has announced the $400 million transformation programme will include a rebrand and a refreshed loyalty scheme. Countdown and Woolworths Group NZ Manging Director Spencer Sonn says this rebrand is a material investment that will transform the business. "We've got a lot of old stores we need to upg...

Westpac economists predict that the Reserve Bank isn't done hiking up the OCR. The RBNZ has indicated through forecasts in the May Monetary Policy Statement that they don't see the OCR going up further than 5.5 percent. Westpac Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold says it's going to be difficult getting inflation to go down to the target range of 3 percent within their 18-month timeframe. LISTEN ABOVE  ...

A chance for businesses to reconnect with a changing China. The China Business Summit began in Auckland at 7am this morning. Prime Minister Chris Hipkins will speak —covering topics like trade and investment— and insights from his recent trip to China and Nato Summit attendance. The Chinese Ambassador and the New Zealand China Council are also attending. Council Executive Director, Alistair Crozie...

US inflation fell to 3 percent in June, highlighting the Federal Reserve's success at pushing down price pressures. The US dollar has dropped to a 15-month low, in sharp contrast to other economies struggling to control inflation. NZ Herald business editor at large Liam Dann says this is down to the US having a very efficient economy, a fact that's often overlooked. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com...

The Finance Minister is putting on a brave face after news his work on a wealth tax won't come to fruition. Although proposals were considered by Cabinet, Chris Hipkins ruled out introducing a wealth tax or a capital gains tax while Prime Minister. To discuss, Dentons Kensington Swan Partner and tax expert, Bruce Bernacchi joined Kerre Woodham. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privac...

If owning your own business wasn't hard enough - new data shows us that nearly half of small business owners are not actually even paying themselves. That is on top of dipping into their savings and increasing prices just to keep afloat. BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Has the Government's desire to bail out their dire fortunes in the election, in fact, made them worse? The revelation that the Government was indeed considering a wealth tax this budget has been blown wide open by the release of budget papers - and the Prime Minister confirming that he killed it. For months now there has been a suspicion of this. I first got wind of it in a speech the Statistics M...

Loneliness and social isolation is said to impact as many as one-third of the world population - and here we have new research into how AI-powered robots could provide some companionship to help combat this. But as AI develops further and gives companion robots better skills to build social connections, researchers are saying some guidelines are needed. Researcher from the faculty of Medical and H...

Grant Robertson admits he's disappointed Chris Hipkins has ruled out capital gains and wealth taxes. The Finance Minister told Mike Hosking he understands the reasoning for Hipkins' decision, even if he doesn't fully agree with it. “We’ve got a very volatile economic situation that we’re in, we’ve got to get through that.” LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.