The SME Stream

There are hopes things will gradually turn a corner for Canterbury milk processing firm Synlait.  It's revealed it expects to report a $77 to $82 million half-year loss, due to the ongoing impact of previous "manufacturing challenges” at its Dunsandel plant.  Ashburton-based supplier Willy Leferink says suppliers are worried, but they have supply contracts to honour, and what reall...

New Zealand's economic recovery could be more of a crawl, or a climb, than a bounce.  The job market remains tough, with unemployment now at a ten-year high.  EMA Head of Advocacy Alan McDonald told Ryan Bridge it's going to take a while for improved conditions and Government policy changes to flow through to the job market.  ASB Senior Economist Mark Smith says while jobs are being...

The Government has launched a review into soaring home insurance costs - to take place over a six-month period. This investigation comes as AA Insurance moves to pause new home insurance offers across the South Island. NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny unpacked what we can expect from this deep dive. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Blenheim residents say AA Insurance has stopped offering new home insurance policies in their town, following similar decisions in Westport and parts of greater Christchurch.  The insurer would not confirm that Blenheim and the neighbouring settlements of Renwick and Seddon were subject to its temporary halt. Insurance Council CEO Kris Faafoi says the insurer is still supporting their current...

Do you feel better off than you did three years ago? With it being election year, that’s the question politicians are going to be asking you. It’s the question I’m asking you too in light of the latest unemployment numbers - which are the highest in more than a decade. That’s the overall number. In Canterbury, things are a little bit better. The unemployment rate here is do...

In the latest episode of The Business of Tech, we look at the rise and fall of MethaneSAT, the $30 million national space project that was supposed to cement New Zealand as a serious spacefaring nation.  Instead, it became a case study in governance failure, misaligned incentives and lost opportunity.  Launched in March 2024 and lost in June 2025 after persistent spacecraft glitches, Met...

The chief executive of Open Country Dairy talks about the Gulf Food Trade Show in the Middle East, why Trump is good for business, and the prospects for tonight’s third GDT for 2026. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Economists are divided on whether unemployment is finally starting to fall.  Stats NZ is releasing its latest employment update at 10.45.  Economic conditions are improving, but that's also prompting more people to re-join the labour market.  Most bank economists expect the unemployment rate to remain unchanged from three months ago at an historically high 5.3%, but ASB economists t...

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Many Kiwis re-fixed their mortgage last year and will be re-fixing their mortgage again this year too.  Four in five borrowers have re-fixed in the past year – a 13-year high.  And more than two-thirds of fixed rate loans are due to come up for renewal this year.  Westpac Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold told Mike Hosking most people have been opting for one-year or 18-month term...

New Zealand's biggest bank, ANZ, has downgraded its forecast for property prices this year.  It says its previous forecast of 5% is looking unrealistic as the OCR looks to be making a turn soon and market prices are already falling - now saying a 2% rise is more likely.  Meanwhile, economists are laying out their predictions for when we'll see the OCR make that turn.  Many say it wo...

Rabobank’s senior ag analyst previews the bank’s NZ Agribusiness Outlook 2026 - titled "Keeping one move ahead". See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A view that increased employment will be the key to our economic bounce back.   Infometrics says there's worrying indicators which show economic momentum is fragile.  But more signs of improvement are expected by midyear, when labour market conditions should be turning.   Infometrics’ Principal Economist Brad Olsen told Ryan Bridge that they are expecting the economy to pick u...

The Minister for Trade's attempting to put to bed concerns about our Free Trade Agreement with India, repeatedly voiced by the NZ First leader.  Winston Peters claims it will let tens of thousands more Indian migrants enter the country.   The Prime Minister has denied the assertion.   Todd McClay told Mike Hosking there are no rights around migration in the agreement – instead it al...

The economy is still struggling to gain momentum.   Infometrics says a lot of the indicators suggest that economic recovery is looking unconvincing. Chief Forecaster Gareth Kiernan says most have taken the possibility of further Official Cash Rate cuts off the table, and some are forecasting a hike. He told Mike Hosking that things are improving, but the problem for households in particular i...

Winston Peters claims our proposed trade agreement with India would let visa holders bring family members with them.  The Trade Minister denies the FTA could allow 20,000 to 25,000 more immigrant arrivals. Peters says Todd McClay admitted the loophole himself to a select committee.   "He had to concede that there were those people who had the right to bring their spouses and their childr...

In this episode of Make It Happen , Iyia sits down with Charlotte, founder of &Breathe one of Make It Happens students, to unpack how she went from paediatric ICU nurse to building a fast-growing education business reaching over 15 million organic views in six months. Charlotte shares how solving a real problem for parents led to sell-out online and in-person trainings, the exact social media...

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Economists are expecting the Official Cash Rate to rise sooner rather than later, flattening forecasts for the property market.  Cotality's latest report shows almost three quarters of local respondents expect house prices to rise this year.   Meanwhile, ANZ's slashed its house price inflation forecast for 2026 from 5% to 2%.  ANZ Chief Economist Sharon Zollner told Mike Hosking the...

Two Kiwi engineers who helped build the future of self‑driving cars in Silicon Valley are now quietly laying the foundations for the next great tech wave: physical AI.  In the latest episode of The Business of Tech, I talk to Harry Mellsop, co‑founder of simulation startup Antioch , and Adrian Macneil, co‑founder and CEO of data platform Foxglove , for a fast‑paced tour of where robotics is r...

The Reserve Bank spent most of 2025 lowering the OCR, leaving experts to speculate how these changes impacted the economy. Since then, economic and business confidence has gone up for the start of 2026, but inflation data for the December quarter has raised some concerns Milford Asset Management expert Brendan Larsen explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informati...

The Official Cash Rate is expected to rise this year, although forecasters say predicting when is tricky. Inflation was stronger in the December quarter than expected, at 3.1 percent. Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen is picking a hike in November - with an outside possibility of one in May.  He says other signs in the market signal a possible increase.  "Actual bank rates for l...