The SME Stream

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ASB's settlement over alleged historic breaches of credit disclosure rules has affected its bottom line. The bank reached a $135.6-million-dollar settlement in October last year. In annual results released today, ASB's reporting a six-percent rise in operating income, but a 16 percent rise in operating expenses. CEO Vittoria Short says inflation and new investments in technology also added to the...

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ExportNZ is sounding the alarm about the costly obstacles faced by exporters.  Its report says at least 83% of our exports are affected by non-tariff barriers, resulting in more than $9 billion a year in costs.  It finds on average, Kiwi products face nine separate non-tariff barriers across the markets they enter.  Executive Director Joshua Tan told Mike Hosking it's also about hav...

Everything in this election's just been turned on its head in 24 hours for three reasons.  And it's not because of National.  Firstly, yesterday, Chris Hipkins was asked if he'd tell us how he would deal with TOP, what the caveats would be.  He said:  Secondly, TOP is looking more and more likely to get into Parliament and council hold the balance of power.  Thirdly, Luxon...

The uncertain economic environment could be the reason for climbing unemployment and declining job ads. The latest Seek data shows job ads fell 0.8 percent last month, the third consecutive month of decline. It suggests conditions remain strongest in the South Island, while centres like Auckland, Wellington, and Waikato face greater headwinds.  Westpac Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold says the l...

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New Zealand businesses have spent much of the past year waiting for the recovery, but what if the economy they’re dealing with now is the new normal? Join Liam Dann and Tamsyn Parker as they ponder whether Christopher Luxon had actually had a point when he shared his controversial thoughts with the Rotorua business community. They also unpack the latest unemployment figures, and look ahead t...

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More Kiwis than ever are in debt to the IRD, and one expert has a theory about why it's gotten so bad.  As of March this year, more than half-a-million people had debt to Inland Revenue, and overall tax debt sat at $9.4 billion, of which Inland Revenue said 62 percent, or $5.9 billion, was collectable. Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand lead, John Cuthbertson, says there's been a sig...

Over in Australia, the Reserve Bank has moved to keep the official cash rate in place at 4.35 percent. The result was widely expected by economists and money markets, despite inflation remaining above the RBA’s 2-3 percent target range in the June quarter. HSBC Chief Economist Paul Bloxham says there's evidence that the Australian economy is slowing down, which is helping put downward pressu...

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More people are starting businesses, despite tough economic conditions.  Data shows there's been more than 62 thousand companies incorporated in the year to July, the highest number since 2021.  That's despite latest Companies Office data finds liquidations have surged – rising more than 70% in the past three years.  First Retail Group Managing Director Chris Wilkinson told Mi...

Labour says small businesses are our economy's engine room, as the party launches a new election policy in Rotorua. It's campaigning on a $2 million annual fund to help smaller businesses adopt AI tools. It would also go into topping up an advisory group to help with AI use, and boosting mentoring and support. Leader Chris Hipkins says small businesses want to adapt to this new technology, and the...

EPISODE 112: Vanya Insull started VJ Cooks in 2016 with a Facebook page sharing videos of what she was cooking for her own family. Ten years later, it's a website with 800+ recipes, a meal planning app ( CookPlan ), three cookbooks (with a fourth on the way), and a social media following approaching a million people. 🍴 In this episode, Vanya takes us through the whole journey, from those first Fa...

What happens when organisations genuinely listen to their people and act on what they hear? In this episode of HR Unlocked, Lisa Oakley sits down with Maria Coupland, General Manager People & Culture at Finance Now, to explore employee experience, leadership, culture, and the commercial realities of building high-performing workplaces. Drawing on experience across multiple industries and count...

Nicola Willis says the National's new proposed increase to the fuel tax, the new bed tax and the possible bank levy aren't new information. A Taxpayers' Union Curia Issue poll shows 76 percent of National supporters want the party to promise no new taxes or tax increases. The party yesterday outlined a promise for fiscal responsibility - including a commitment to lower the debt to GDP ratio and to...

Property markets always favour either the buyer or the seller - someone's gonna get more out of it.  It's hard to know what move to make in the property market, and even harder to know when. Harcourts Managing Director Martin Cooper joins Tim Beveridge to answer your questions about the property market, and how to know when to buy, sell or hold. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for pr...

The Cost of Living Crisis has driven a lot of Kiwis to look for financial advice, and many turn to AI over a financial advisor. But is AI really that reliable as a source of financial advice? And investing in AI seems to be the thing to do at the moment, is it somethng you should be getting in to or watching with caution? Money Coach Amanda Morrall joins Tim Beveridge on Smart Money to discuss.&nb...

You are intelligent. You know what to do… so why can’t you make yourself do it? In this episode I explore why weight loss and business burnout have far less to do with motivation than most people believe. I sat down with Brittany McNabb from Mind, Body, Britt - who lost over 40kg, built a successful personal training business and now helps thousands of women transform not only their b...

Buying or selling a house is a complicated and often confusing process that real estate agents are smack in the middle of, and stand to benefit from.  So what should we share when dealing with an agent, and what should we keep close to our chest? Barfoot & Thompson real estate agent Ryan Harding joins Nadine Higgins to explain what you need to consider as a vendor or a buyer, the things a...

Talking about money and finances can be incredibly difficult, and often boring, especially for women. It's hard to get the conversation started even among friends, which can lead you to feeling lost and hopeless.  That's where Victoria Harris comes in. Victoria co-founded the financial education platform The Curve, with the goal of using her experience from working in the finance world to edu...

National's promising to stick to three spending guardrails if it returns to Government, and is calling on other parties to follow suit.  The party's promising a return to surplus in 2028/29  - and bending debt below 40 percent of GDP.  It's also promising to reduce the size of Government, bringing spending to 30 percent of GDP.  Finance Minister Nicola Willis joined the Weekend...

National's brushing off concerns it has a reputational problem over debt - as it lays out new fiscal responsibility rules. The party's promising a surplus by 2028/29 and Government spending below 30% of GDP - while ruling out new taxes on working people and small businesses. Leader Chris Luxon told Mike Hosking that there's a choice between austerity and stimulation, but he believes it's years of...