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The Reserve Bank of Australia’s surprise decision not to cut interest rates only postponed the expected 'parity party' between the Kiwi and the Aussie dollars. The way things are going, it is a matter of time until both currencies are of equal value. Read more
A higher kiwi dollar could boost New Zealand exporters’ productivity, leaving them better off in the long run. Earlier this month the kiwi reached a record high against the euro, trading at a whisker under 70c – the highest level the kiwi has been valued against European currency since its inception. Read more
If the latest signals coming from the Federal Reserve are anything to go by, it is only a matter of time until the US central bank increases its funds rate. Most likely it is going to happen some time over the northern hemisphere summer. Read more
For years, we have been warned that New Zealand is facing a manufacturing crisis. The Kiwi dollar’s high exchange rate would hurt exporters and drive industrial activities out of New Zealand. Read more
Wellington (20 March 2015): Applying GST on low-value imports could easily backfire and end up doing more harm than good for the economy, The New Zealand Initiative warned today. Head of Research, economist Dr Eric Crampton said applying GST at the border only makes sense if there is a way of doing it that neither deters foreign retailers from shipping to New Zealand, nor imposes substantial hassles on Kiwis importing goods from abroad, nor proves too expensive to collect. Read more
Have you ever heard the adage that you cannot have infinite economic growth in a finite planet? Or that economic growth is all well and good, but it is time New Zealand focussed our attention on other things? Read more
I moved to New Zealand in 2003 because I saw it as an island (well, three islands and change) of sanity in a world going mad. The Outside of the Asylum, as Douglas Adams might put it. Read more
Wellington (13 March 2015): If you have recently been told that economic growth makes us unhappy, that it spoils the environment and that it increases inequality in society, think again. That is the key message of a new report from public policy think tank The New Zealand Initiative. Read more
New Zealand is not a cheap place to live – for a lot of reasons. We’re far from a lot of major markets, so shipping goods here can be expensive. Read more
Wellington (12 February 2015): The New Zealand Initiative says Chatham Rise Phosphate’s failure to secure a mining consent underscores the flaws in marine resource legislation, which if left unchanged, could permanently stunt economic growth in New Zealand. The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) yesterday announced that would not grant the Wellington-based company a consent to harvest rock phosphate nodules from Chatham Rise, an undersea ridge situated several hundred kilometres off the Canterbury coast. Read more