Search

Hipkins, 44, received unanimous support from Labour's 64-strong caucus in a meeting on Sunday, he told a news conference in Wellington. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand's ruling Labour Party confirmed that Chris Hipkins will replace Jacinda Ardern as its leader and therefore become the nation's next prime minister. [Extracted from the article]

Several contenders from Ardern's cabinet have emerged, including Education Minister Chris Hipkins, Housing Minister Megan Woods, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta, Justice Minister Kiritapu Allan and Immigration Minister Michael Wood. (Bloomberg) -- The race to become New Zealand's next prime minister is wide open following Jacinda Ardern's shock decision to resign and her obvious successor and deputy Grant Robertson confirming he will not be going for the job. [Extracted from the article]

"I'd say she's New Zealand's most popular prime minister ever overseas", said political analyst Bryce Edwards in 2019....and the lows It's Covid again After her initial success in keeping the virus at bay, Ardern and her government at times floundered. Within days of the attack, Ardern had moved to ban military-style semi-automatic weapons and assault rifles and established a nationwide buyback of the weapons. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand's Jacinda Ardern has announced her shock resignation just months before she was expected to run for a third term in office, saying she no longer has the energy or inspiration to continue as the country's Prime Minister. [Extracted from the article]

"Different brewers will make a call about whether or not they pass those costs on to consumers", said Firth, whose organization represents breweries producing about 83% of New Zealand's beer. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand brewers face a summer squeeze on beer production and the risk of higher costs as the nation's only maker of food-grade carbon dioxide remains closed. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- A US court has temporarily banned imports of New Zealand fish caught in the habitat of the Maui dolphin because the South Pacific nation's protections for the critically endangered species are not comparable to those in the US. "New Zealand has put in place comprehensive measures to protect Maui dolphins which have been based on the best available scientific information", said James Brown, manager of international fisheries management at MPI. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand's central bank has been surprised by the strength of inflation, which has boosted price expectations and required a more aggressive interest-rate response, Assistant Governor Karen Silk said. "What we have seen is actual inflation continue to surprise on the upside, but more importantly inflation expectations have moved higher as well", Silk said in an interview with Bloomberg Monday in Wellington. Asked if the RBNZ could stop short of taking the OCR to 5.5%, Silk said the bank would need to see inflation receding and a subsequent decline in inflation expectations. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand central bank governor Adrian Orr has been reappointed for a second five-year term, giving him the opportunity to complete an aggressive tightening cycle as the bank seeks to regain control of inflation. "Appalled" The National Party is "appalled" by Robertson's decision to re-appoint Orr without first completing an independent review of the bank's performance, Willis said in a statement. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Hancock Prospecting, owned by billionaire Gina Rinehart, has withdrawn its planned sponsorship of Netball Australia, amid a reported backlash from players about indigenous issues and the mining firm's environmental credentials. "Hancock and Roy Hill do not wish to add to netball's disunity problems, and accordingly Hancock has advised Netball Australia that it has withdrawn from its proposed partnership effective immediately", the press release said. [Extracted from the article]

The bill will also provide the Australian Information Commissioner with greater powers to resolve privacy breaches. (Bloomberg) -- The Australian government will next week introduce legislation to significantly increase penalties for privacy breaches after the huge hack at mobile-phone operator Optus. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- National Australia Bank Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Ross McEwan said the increased frequency of flooding in Australia and New Zealand is prompting the lender to rethink its funding in areas prone to inundation in the future. "Wage growth is accelerating and for the banking industry our loan book fundamentals are very solid", McEwan said. [Extracted from the article]

Speaking later at the Bloomberg Address, Robertson said while the government could try to achieve a surplus earlier, a sharp correction would do "significant damage to New Zealand." (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand can avoid a recession even in the face of a global slowdown and as the nation's central bank continues to aggressively tightens policy to slow inflation, Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson said. [Extracted from the article]

That would bring combined hikes since October to 2.75 percentage points, the most aggressive cycle since New Zealand pioneered inflation targeting over 30 years ago, and exceed the Federal Reserve's 2.25 points of increases. New Zealand's economy is running near full capacity and the central bank has been driving up borrowing costs to try to keep inflation expectations anchored. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand is poised to keep spearheading a global tightening cycle to rein in spiraling inflation, even as signs emerge that its rapid-fire interest-rate increases are beginning to cool the economy. [Extracted from the article]

Months-old Tesla Model 3s with only a few hundred miles on the clock are selling for around A$130,000 ($91,000) or higher in Australia, more than one-third above the price of a new one. In a distant land the electric car industry has almost forgotten, one of the year's unlikely best investments is turning out to be a new Tesla. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's partner, Clarke Gayford, said he's been paid an undisclosed sum following a settlement with a media company that published untrue comments about him. NZME Radio on March 25 made remarks about him on both a podcast and social media pages that were damaging and untrue, Gayford said in a statement Friday in Wellington. Gayford is a New Zealand TV host who in recent years has juggled his career with being a stay-at-home father to the couple's daughter, Neve. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will lead a trade delegation to the US this week but is yet to confirm a meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House due to her recent Covid-19 infection. Ardern departs Monday evening New Zealand time and will be accompanied by Trade Minister Damien O'Connor and business leaders from companies including Silver Fern Farms, Fonterra and Zespri. [Extracted from the article]

"New Zealand's relationship with the United States is one of our most enduring and significant", Ardern said in a statement. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will return from her Covid-19 isolation period on Monday to lead a trade delegation to the US to support her nation's export growth and promote tourism. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Sunday congratulated Anthony Albanese and the Labor Party on winning the Australian Federal election. Albanese's Labor Party is set to take power for the first time since 2013, after Morrison conceded defeat on Saturday night. [Extracted from the article]

See Solomon Islands Signs China Security Pact, Rebuffing Australia ©2022 Bloomberg L.P. Beijing's talks with Kiribati are the most advanced, the newspaper said, adding that China was discussing a pact with at least one other Pacific country. (Bloomberg) -- China is negotiating security deals with two further Pacific nations following its agreement with the Solomon Islands last month, the Financial Times newspaper reported, citing officials in the US and allied countries. [Extracted from the article]

EU diplomats discussed a sixth package of Russia sanctions, with Hungary objecting to the oil phase-out timing. Fiscal Dodge: Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and his opponent Jim Chalmers avoided laying out a path to fiscal repair in their pre-election debate, suggesting central bank interest-rate hikes alone will have to rein in inflation. [Extracted from the article]

The fund's Chief Economist Brian Parker sees the central bank lifting rates by 25 basis points at each meeting. Central bank officials face a political challenge on whether to raise interest rates in the middle of a highly charged election campaign or hold off until June and take the possible criticism for ducking the call. End of Easy: The global shift away from easy money is poised to accelerate as a pandemic bond-buying blitz by central banks swings into reverse, threatening another shock to the world's economies and financial markets. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Good morning, it's Ainsley here and this is what you need to know to kick off your morning. Climate Backpedal: The government was forced to deny it's abandoning a commitment to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, after Liberal National party senator Matt Canavan went rogue and said the climate action target was "sort of dead.". [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the country will shift into a new alert system to manage Covid-19 on Dec. 3, a step that moves away from the use of lockdowns and will allow all businesses to operate. All of New Zealand will move into the Covid-19 Protection Framework at midnight on Dec. 2, making Dec. 3 the first day the so-called traffic-light system will be operational, Ardern told a news conference Monday in Wellington. [Extracted from the article]

"Aucklanders who have been vaccinated or tested will be able to reconnect with the rest of New Zealand in time for Christmas and summer", Ardern said Wednesday in Wellington. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said a temporary border around Auckland will lift on Dec. 15, allowing vaccinated people or those who show a negative Covid-19 test result to leave the city for the first time in almost four months. [Extracted from the article]

The remains of two bodies were identified after specialized cameras were fed into the Pike River coal mine through boreholes, police said in a statement Wednesday in Christchurch. (Bloomberg) -- Human remains have been discovered at the site of one of New Zealand's worst mining disasters more than a decade after the explosion that trapped and killed 29 men. [Extracted from the article]

"We made a commitment to closing the gender pay gap in 2018 and we've delivered the largest three-year drop since measurement began", Tinetti said. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand's gender pay gap in the public sector narrowed to the smallest on record as the government pursues wage equity for women, an issue championed by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. [Extracted from the article]

"Weta Digital's tools created unlimited possibilities for us to bring to life the worlds and creatures that originally lived in our imaginations", Jackson said in the statement. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand director Peter Jackson, best known for the "Lord of the Rings" movies, will sell the technology division of his award-winning visual effects company Weta Digital to U.S. 3D game-development platform Unity Software Inc. for $1.625 billion in cash and stock. "Lord of the Rings" Director Jackson Sells Tech Unit for $1.6B. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern further eased Covid-19 restrictions in Auckland and said the country's largest city is on track to exit lockdown by the end of the month. "Cabinet has a check-in on Nov. 29 and there is a strong expectation that Auckland will likely move into the Covid-19 Protection Framework following this check-in", Ardern said, referring to the new traffic-light system that will see New Zealand move away from large-scale lockdowns. [Extracted from the article]

"Higher interest rates could prove to be a headwind to asset prices both globally and in New Zealand, and there could be heightened sensitivity from the continued rise in debt burdens around the world", the RBNZ said. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand's transition to living with Covid-19 could lead to changes in consumer behavior that damp economic growth, the central bank said. [Extracted from the article]

"Higher interest rates could prove to be a headwind to asset prices both globally and in New Zealand, and there could be heightened sensitivity from the continued rise in debt burdens around the world", the RBNZ said. (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand's transition to living with Covid-19 could lead to changes in consumer behavior that damp economic growth, the central bank said. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand will begin scaling back one of its key Covid-19 defenses by easing border restrictions for fully vaccinated people arriving from overseas. The amount of time travelers will have to spend in government-run hotel quarantine facilities will be halved to 7 from 14 days from Nov. 14, Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said in a news conference in Wellington on Thursday. [Extracted from the article]