The SME Stream

Humans are wired to find the path of least resistance - but how can that be done when it comes to your finances?  LISTEN ABOVE The podcasts in the SME Stream contain general information only, not financial or professional advice. Any opinions expressed in the podcasts are not necessarily shared by BNZ, or its related entities. BNZ is not liable for any losses resulting fro...

If every time you have holiday at the beach you think ‘how can I just stay here fulltime and escape the rat race in the city’ - today’s episode is for you.  Dallas and Donna Gurney were two corporate high fliers hustling hard and enjoying city life – when a major life curveball prompted them to re-think everything.  They chucked in their Auckland jobs to take on a...

If the theme of 2024 was ‘cutting back’, then 2025 is all about ‘growth’. The word appears 31 times in Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s State of the Nation speech – and for good reason.  Luxon said it’s the “key to brighter days ahead” after experiencing the “biggest recession since the early 1990s.” Finance Minister Nicola W...

The government has announced plans to double New Zealand's mineral exports to $3 billion in the next ten years.  The Critical Minerals List now includes 37 minerals, after the addition of gold and metallurgical coal.  NZ First's Shane Jones also took aim at big banks limiting lending to the fossil fuels industry, noting his support for the Australian Liberal-National Opposition's attempt...

New Zealand’s “rockstar economy” seems to have become washed up.  HSBC chief economist Paul Bloxham coined the term in 2014, and in an update last week confirmed that that’s far from the case at present.  He says that the economy had the largest decline in economic growth in the developed world last year, driven by interest rate increases in response to post-pande...

There's been plenty of volatility in the tech market this week off the back of the recent DeepSeek fiasco. Despite things picking up after this week's crash, experts are still wondering what's set to happen next. Sam Dickie from Fisher Funds explains further. LISTEN ABOVE  The podcasts in the SME Stream contain general information only, not financial or professional advice...

A new report has found that beer makes up almost 1% of our country's GDP. Brewing accounted for $3.6 billion of our GDP last year and 1.3% of the national workforce is employed in the brewing industry, but alcohol excise duties often outpace inflation, and this is having an effect on the industry. Garage Project co-owner Jos Ruffell is calling for smaller hikes in excise tax to support the in...

US President Donald Trump has imposed tariffs on goods coming from Canada, Mexico and China, sparking fears of a trade war. China is facing 10% on imports, while Canada and Mexico will see 25%.  Canada has already hit back with retaliatory 25% tariffs for the US.  Geopolitical Analyst Geoffrey Miller talks to Andrew Dickens about what these decisions will mean for the US and if New Zeala...

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.    Donald Trump: 8/10  Yes, there's some madness and puffery and stuff you know will never happen, but he has a lot of energy and “buy in”. This will be a dramatic and, I think on balance, successful four years.    Our economy: 2/10  Whil...

As business owners, you know how hard it is keeping up with your business, let alone the news. Join Wilhelmina Shrimpton each week as she gives you a rundown of the biggest stories that could impact on your business, so you can make informed decisions with expert advice.  In this weekly wrap, a preview of what’s to come in next week’s unemployment figures, there’s all this c...

Last week, Te Hiku Media chief executive and one of Time magazine's most influential people in AI, Peter-Lucas Jones, spoke to the world leaders gathered at the World Economic Forum in Davos. As our featured guest this week, Jones explains how the Kaitaia-based media company is using AI to save native languages across the globe., Plus, cutting through the noise on what DeepSeek actually is and doe...

Over in the US, tech stocks have picked up again after a 3 percent selloff after Chinese startup DeepSeek caused a storm in the AI industry. The stocks took a dive earlier in the week after DeepSeek stunned the tech world by revealing it could compete with US counterparts at a fraction of the cost. Milford Asset Management's Andrew Curtayne explains what this means for the wider world of AI. LISTE...

Tech stocks have been taking a hammering after the debut of DeepSeek.  The Chinese tech firm has created a budget AI model said to be cheaper and more efficient than the other models on the market.  It sent the stocks of Nasdaq and NVIDIA tumbling – Nasdaq falling about 3% and NVIDIA plummeting more than 16%.  Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen told Andrew Dickens that...

The good people at OneRoof were hinting at it the other day.  They were reacting to what I know to be a bit of a buzz within the real estate community that the Government are going to move on foreign buyers this year.  I talk to a lot of agents. They range from telling me it's on, to those who hope it's on, to those who want it to be on but aren't holding their breath.  Currently yo...

The Government's hopeful that digital nomads will help grow New Zealand's economy off the back of their recent visa change. Finance Minister Nicola Willis hasn't confirmed how many the nation can realistically expect to arrive - but she's got faith in this strategy. Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen unpacks the current hotspots for digital nomads - and reveals what New Zealand can do to g...

An expert is backing a recent recommendation that retirees need a decent amount of money to top up their superannuation.  New Expenditure Guidelines have found less than $500 thousand in savings is enough for most over-65s.   Superannuation and Super Fund expert Jonathan Eriksen told Roman Travers a nest egg is required to top up superannuation.  He says Massey University's half a m...

If feel like you’re done working for ‘the man’, and you want lexibility, autonomy, to be the master of your own destiny - you might be considering chucking in your job and working for yourself.  But behind the romantic ideal of self employment, there is a bit to get your head around if you’ve only ever been an employee. This week, Nadine is joined by James Fuller,&nbsp...

The Finance Minister is determined to get tourism figures back up to their pre-pandemic levels - and she hopes the newest batch of visa changes will speed that along. From today, visitors can work remotely for overseas companies while holidaying in New Zealand for up to nine months, but they may need to declare themselves New Zealand tax residents if they stay for over 90 days. Nicola Willis says...

Tonight on The Huddle, Child Fund CEO Josie Pagani and Kiwiblog writer and Curia pollster David Farrar joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! President Donald Trump is floating the idea of 'cleaning out' Gaza as the ongoing conflict continues. What's going on here? The Treaty Principles Bill submissions started today - how do we think it went? Was it a construc...

It's set to be a big week for the US' biggest tech companies. Meta, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon and Tesla are all expected to report their results in the coming days - and it's likely these businesses will be expecting a boost from the new presidential administration.  Mark Lister from Craigs Investment Partners explains what we can expect. LISTEN ABOVE The podcasts in the SME Stream c...

Tourists in Aotearoa on the visitor visa will soon be able to work remotely while here. The change is targeting 'digital nomads', people employed by overseas companies here to holiday and work at the same time, in the hope they will spend more time and money in the country. Tourism is currently New Zealand's second largest export and the latest visitor numbers from Stats NZ show in November 2024 w...

The Government's signalling more visa changes could be on the way to encourage overseas travellers.   There's been a loosening of visa settings, allowing tourists on holiday here for up to nine months to work remotely for an overseas employer.   Tourism Minister Louise Upston says the tourism sector continues to fall short of pre-pandemic visitor numbers.  She told Mike Hosking they...

There are more tariff threats from President Trump after a tense standoff with Colombia.  The South American nation rejected US planes of deported Colombian migrants, but has now had to backtrack after Trump threatened large tariffs.  The President has floated imposing tariffs on a number of trading partners as part of his 'America first' economic policy.  But New Zealand Internatio...

The United States has stood out as the only major economy experiencing significant expansion amid Global PMIs.  The economic health indicator was a mixed bag for manufacturing and service sectors.  Meanwhile, luxury brand Burberry has soared 10% on its quarterly update.  And back home, why are things are looking up for the red meat sector?  Devon Funds Management representative...

SailGP's chief technology officer Warren Jones goes deep into all the ways he and his team have integrated digital technologies into the very foundation of the sport changing the nature of racing. Plus, the ramifications for New Zealand and the world-at-large of the technology billionaires buying their way into US President Donald Trump's good graces. The Business of Tech is sponsored by 2degrees...