Weekly Digest – 13 March 2024
Welcome to our Weekly Digest – stay in the know with some recent news updates relevant to business and the economy.
Mortgage tax deductions to be restored from April
Landlords will once again be able to claim tax deductions for interest on residential investment property from the start of next month, David Seymour says.
New tourism data shows continued recovery
The latest International Visitor Survey (IVS) data shows international tourism is steadily returning to pre-pandemic levels.
Small businesses poised to play a key role in the country’s economic recovery
Data released today by ANZ Bank New Zealand shows a wave of new small businesses being well-positioned to drive growth in the local economy. According to data from Stats NZ, there are approximately 546,000 small businesses in New Zealand representing 97 percent of all firms.
How the Govt can do more to support small businesses
Rough economic conditions in the past few years have forced small business owners to tighten their belts, while also leaving many overworked and without the upskilling needed to keep growing. In response to this, Xero is calling on the Government to take more steps to support small businesses to help them succeed as they face further economic challenges.
More Kiwis believe housing market downturn is over despite sluggish market
The housing market might still be sluggish, with sales volume at historically low levels, but New Zealanders are increasingly confident it is on the turn. ASB’s latest Housing Confidence survey shows house price expectations continued to increase, in the three months to January.
ASB, ANZ drop some home loan rates after OCR decision
Major banks ASB and ANZ are cutting some home lending rates. Last week’s Official Cash Rate (OCR) decision and market responses to that have influenced this move.
Companies remain under pressure from high inflation, interest rates
Companies with greater exposure to international markets have had much more positive reports than those dependent on the domestic market, says Devon Funds Management head of retail Greg Smith.
Trade deficit shrank in December quarter even though NZ exports got less bang for buck
We exported more but got less bang for our buck in the last three months of 2023. And we imported fewer things but still paid more than we did for those imports in the September quarter. Stats NZ said despite that somewhat painful-to-digest scenario, New Zealand still managed to narrow its trade deficit in the quarter from $8.1 billion to $4.6b.
What’s really going on with the Government books?
Hearing Finance Minister Nicola Willis and predecessor Grant Robertson talk about the state of the Government books, you might think they were talking about two different sets of numbers. Susan Edmunds breaks down what you need to know.
A tough economic year ahead for homeowners but could New Zealand get lucky?
The Reserve Bank has kept the official cash rate (OCR) at 5.5 per cent and softened its stance slightly but new homeowners are still facing a tough year ahead. After announcing its decision last week, new forecasts suggest the Reserve Bank might be on track to cut sooner than it had previously indicated.
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