The SME Stream

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, as predicted, things have gotten worse for the job market with the latest unemployment figures o...

The Prime Minister has taken aim at the chief executives of New Zealand’s largest banks saying it was 'utterly unacceptable' that some were withdrawing banking services from petrol stations and mines. Chris Luxon joined Mike Hosking earlier today to explain that the banks needed to keep funding businesses Kiwis need to keep moving forward - and expressed concern at rural petrol stations in p...

New Zealand could have one of the least competitive corporation tax rates - but that could change by May. The Prime Minister has hinted this year's Budget could make way for relief.  The rate has stayed on 28 percent since 2011 - but Finance Minister Nicola Willis is making comparisons with countries like Ireland, with a 12.5 percent rate. Advisory expert Robin Oliver says such a change would...

Treasury has warned the Government that 'significant reforms' or 'reductions to public services' will be needed in the not-too-distant future if it sticks to its current, restricted spending track. New reports reveal the Government will not post a surplus under the traditional Obegal measure until 2031 - even with this relatively tight spending. Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen explains...

Possible corporate tax cuts could be on the way in this year's Budget.  Nicola Willis told Ryan Bridge yesterday that our corporate tax system isn't competitive enough with other countries, hinting at potential changes.  Christopher Luxon confirmed to Mike Hosking this morning that they're willing to make changes, and there's a lot of possible options.  Dentons Kensington Swan Tax P...

We know times are tough. We know that we're in a period of rebuilding, we know that there are green shoots starting to come through. We're looking towards the end of 2025 as a time when things will turn around, when things will start to improve, and things will start to get better on a micro level in our own households, and on a macro level when it comes to the government.   But there are sti...

The Far Out Convoy is bringing together leading founders and international investors for a road trip from Auckland to Queenstown, with half of the attendees coming from Silicon Valley in the US.  Venture Capitalist Rob Coneybeer said New Zealand "has done a great job at attracting foreign talent."  What potential are investors seeing in New Zealand?  LISTEN ABOVE.  The podcasts...

Centrix is keeping positive despite rising financial hardship and almost half a million Kiwis behind on loan repayments. The credit reporting agency's latest Credit Indicator report shows consumer arrears are 1.3% higher year on year, with financial hardship up 19%. But Managing Director Keith McLaughlin told Mike Hosking the figures are seasonal and have been impacted by Christmas and the school...

New Zealand’s taxes aren’t as competitive as they once were.  Finance Minister Nicola Willis has floated potential tax cuts for corporations in the wake of the latest Treasury report.  Speaking to Ryan Bridge on Newstalk ZB last night, she says our corporate tax rate is reasonably high compared to the rest of the world.  Former Treasury Director Bryce Wilkinson told Mike...

New Zealand's Trade Minister isn't speaking out against Donald Trump's tariffs just yet, but admits they'll impact Kiwi businesses. The US President has imposed tariffs between 10 to 25 percent on Canada and Mexico. Canada is slapping levies on US goods in response, and Mexico's threatening to do the same. Todd McClay says his focus is on our relationship with the US.  "We are talking to them...

President Donald Trump is set to impose new tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China - and the markets took a tumble overnight. Canada and Mexico are facing 25 percent tariffs and China will be hit by a 10 percent tariff. Harbour Asset Management's Shane Solly explains further. LISTEN ABOVE The podcasts in the SME Stream contain general information only, not financial or professiona...

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...