The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Here's a small myth-busting exercise for you – things aren't as bad as you might think.  Business sales from small and medium businesses are up and by quite a lot. They're up 21% in fact.  Why would you buy a business at a time like this?  You know why. Because life goes on and people have dreams and those dreams don’t get buffeted about by fiscal uncertainty.  There were 27,00...

Returning after a long and packed weekend, Andrew Saville and Jason Pine joined Mike Hosking to wrap the weekend’s sporting news.  On today’s agenda:  The success of the first Super Round at Christchurch’s One NZ Stadium and the Super Rugby Pacific results.   The looming fight between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.  Plus, Sebastian Sawe has become the first man to run a maratho...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 28th of April, Trade Minister Todd McClay called in from India to discuss the signing of the FTA, and King Charles has touched down in the US in the wake of an attempted assassination over the weekend.   The PM was in after a short week to talk the India trade deal, our fuel supplies, ACT’s displeasure with the major events fund, and...

New Zealand’s look seems set to change. A new report from Koi Tū Centre for Informed Futures predicts New Zealand's population could look very different in the coming years.   It expects there to be fewer births, emptying of rural centres, and more Asian people than New Zealand Europeans in Auckland.  Co-author and Emeritus Professor Paul Spoonley told Mike Hosking they don’t want to cat...

The Trade Minister says there won't be any unpleasant surprises in the final text of our free trade agreement with India.  The deal is due to be tabled in Parliament today after Todd McClay signed it in New Delhi overnight.  New Zealand First has concerns over what it means for immigration, while Labour's concerned about potential requirements for investing in India.  McClay told Mi...

The freight industry wants any transport changes to save fuel introduced now, not later.  The Government is looking at allowing some heavy vehicles to carry more weight per trip as well as potentially allowing them to travel during off-peak times.  Mainfreight Managing Director Don Braid told Mike Hosking they shouldn't delay.  He says supply is the biggest worry, so these sorts of...

The Prime Minister says New Zealand's free trade agreement with India should be in effect by the end of the year.  The deal's been signed in New Delhi overnight.  It's due to be tabled in Parliament today, have its first reading in May, and then go through select committee and public consultation before its final reading, possibly in late September.  Christopher Luxon told Mike Hosk...

King Charles and Queen Camilla have landed in the US for their state visit on the back of the shooting outside the White House Correspondents' Dinner.  The 31-year-old suspect, California teacher Cole Allen, is currently appearing in court over the shooting and been charged with attempted assassination of the president.  The royals are visiting the US for four-days with a bilateral meeti...

If you want a lesson in how to set up a business properly, then Moana Pasifika is not your guide.  I wandered through the whole sorry saga in Kate MacNamara's excellent work, which took me back once again into how it all started and how most likely, even then, it was always going to end up the way it has.  Sports Minister Mark Mitchell has said there is no public money for professional s...

At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all.    The India FTA: 8/10   Got there at last. Todd McClay is signing and Labour's on board. How hard did it ever have to be?    Labour and the FTA: 3/10  You knew they would blink. But it was either pathetic games or an inability to make a decision, bo...

Disappointment of the week for me has been the gargantuan mess Formula 1 has got itself into in the name of climate change.  They want to be net zero by 2030. The question you can quite rightly ask as of this week, or as of the 2026 rules changes, is, at what cost?  In looking to save the planet not everything has to be ruined.  Christmas tinsel is up 40% because of the war and all...

It’s Friday, which means Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson are back to Wrap the Week that Was.  They discussed the state of New Zealand’s politicians, David Seymour’s new financial literacy proposal, and the gift Mike received from what may be his youngest listener.   LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s a big weekend for rugby, Christchurch hosting the Super Round this weekend at the new One NZ Stadium.   Five games will be played across the long weekend, the Crusaders kicking things off tonight with a clash against the Waratahs.  75,000 fans are expected, with 13,000 coming from out of town.  Super Rugby Pacific CEO Jack Mesley told Mike Hosking that squeezing five games into...

The CEO of a financial literacy programme for kids believes David Seymour’s youth investment idea has promise.   The ACT Leader's floating the idea of giving every Year 11 student $500 to learn to invest and be tested on how they're doing.  The financial literacy course would cover term deposits and risk funds, and any returns could potentially be given back to the students.   Money...

Trump aide Karoline Leavitt has denied claims that the ceasefire has been shattered by Iranian forces seizing two cargo ships, because the ships did not belong to the US or Israel.  US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking two former national security advisors had weighed in, with one calling Leavitt’s claim “utterly incoherent” and another saying it was “very concerning” Iran could...

The Tourism Minister says SailGP simply wasn't economically viable. The sailing regatta won't be held in Auckland next year after the Government's withdrew funding for it. Auckland Council's economic development agency, Tataki Auckland Unlimited, says it's done everything it can to get the fixture across the line. But Minister Louise Upston told Mike Hosking the numbers ultimately just didn't add...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 24th of April, Treasury is revising its economic outlooks amid oil shocks, and exporters are pleased the India Free Trade Agreement is finally moving forward .   It’s a big weekend for Christchurch with the brand-new One NZ Stadium hosting this year’s Super Round . Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson talk the Famous Five, Karl Urban's love o...

Productivity’s taken another hit.  Stats NZ data shows a 0.9% decline in multifactor productivity in the year to March, and while labour productivity increased 0.8%, it was a result of hours dropping faster than outputs.   Primary industries are doing the heavy lifting, with a 72% increase in goods and services per hour.  Forsyth Barr Investment Strategist Zoe Wallis told Mike Hoski...

Hopes of golden opportunities from the India free trade agreement, with Labour now giving the deal its backing.  The Government's set to sign the agreement in New Delhi next week.  It will reduce or eliminate tariffs on 95% of exports to India, the world's largest country.  NZ Special Agricultural Trade Envoy and Meat Industry Association Chair Nathan Guy told Mike Hosking the busin...

The pitch is ready and waiting for the doors to open at Christchurch's new One NZ Stadium.  The stadium's hosting Super Rugby’s Super Round over the next three days, with the Crusaders taking on the Waratahs in front of a 25 thousand strong crowd in tonight's opening match.  Construction on the $683 million venue started in 2022 after Lancaster Park was destroyed in the 2011 quakes.&nbsp...

The Finance Minister's between a rock and hard place ahead of her budget.  Moody's has downgraded New Zealand's economic outlook from stable to negative and Treasury officials are revisiting their economic forecasts.   Nicola Willis says the Government shouldn't be spending more to deal with the fuel crisis, but austerity also isn't the answer.  Former Treasury Secretary and NZ Init...

If you are one of those exercised about supermarkets and whether they are scandal merchants, then you must follow the current court case in Australia.  It’s the second of its type.  The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is dealing with Woolworths, having previously dealt with Coles. The Coles' case decision is reserved as they wait for this week's Woolworths case.&nbs...

Barry Soper is a staple of New Zealand’s political landscape.  After joining the Parliamentary Press Gallery in 1980, he’s spent nearly five decades as a political reporter, questioning the country’s leaders.  And now he’s diving into the details, revealing some of the untold stories of the twelve Prime Ministers that have spanned his career in ‘One Last Question, Prime Minister’.  ...

Tensions between Italy and Russia are riding high.  Italy has summoned the Russian ambassador in Rome after Vladimir Solovyov, a Russian television presenter, insulted Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on air.  According to Italian media, Solovyov said Meloni was, among other things, “a disgrace to the human race” and a “certified idiot”.  He went on to call her “fascist scum who betray...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 23rd of April, Trade Minister Todd McClay is off to India to sign the Free Trade Agreement, while Immigration Minister Erica Stanford discusses the success of the Active Investor Plus visa.   After saying yes to an interview and demanding the right of reply, National MP Joseph Mooney pulled out of his interview this morning – Mike...