International trade could be a source of tension with the election of Donald Trump as US President, says BusinessNZ. BusinessNZ Chief Executive Kirk Hope says New Zealand’s prosperity relies on open and free trading of our export products, and if the US takes a more closed approach to trade in future, New Zealand export returns could be affected. "The US is New Zealand’s third largest export market. Trade with the US earns New Zealand over $5 billion a year in products including meat, dairy and wine, and over $2 billion a year in services. A reduction in this level of…

  ExportNZ says Trump winning the US Presidential election signals a bumpy ride for currency markets and a lost opportunity to reduce trade barriers for New Zealand products if the TPPA gets knocked back. Executive Director Catherine Beard says, "Trump's anti-trade position and general protectionist stance is concerning. If his intentions to stop US companies from outsourcing overseas and tariff walls eventuate then New Zealand will lose from this. "The US is an important market for New Zealand. We exported $8.4 billion of goods and services there in 2015. If Trump's economic policies result in slowing the growth of the…

In his speech and in questions and answers to the Marlborough Chamber of Commerce last week New Zealand First Leader and Northland MP Rt Hon Winston Peters explained why he thought Donald Trump would win the US presidential election. “His victory results from the establishment treating ordinary Americans with contempt, and they are fighting back with their vote. Leading up to the election 72 per cent had no trust in Washington politicians.   “This is yet again a dramatic lesson for the commentariat, pollsters and the political establishment.   “The greatest message for the elite is that the ordinary people in the…

SAN DIEGO, Nov. 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Halo, provider of self-service supply chain intelligence geared to the mid-market and with a focus primarily on manufacturing, distribution and retail, today announced its development centre in Auckland, New Zealand has been awarded Research and Development funding under the New Zealand Government's Callaghan Innovation Scheme, a scheme committed to accelerating business growth through government investment. Key criteria of the Halo submission included providing a sound history of sales growth and a positive cash flow, along with a convincing R&D program and business plan. The Callaghan Growth Grant will provide a 20% rebate for…

The psychology behind voting: What makes you tick.   As Americans prepare for an unprecedented election and Brits continue to reel from the Brexit fallout, Joanne Black looks at the psychology and genetics of how we vote in this weeks edition of The Listener. Entertainment, puzzlement call it what you may but this latest round of presidential elections in the US have transfomed  politics into a form of entertainment no matter the seriousness of the outcome. Continue to the full article

A workplace fatality involving an exploding bitumen emulsion tank has important lessons for industry according to WorkSafe New Zealand. On 30 November last year, an employee of Corboy Earthmovers Limited in Te Awamutu was killed when emulsion was being transferred under pressure from a transport tank (an “emulsion pig”) to a heating tank. A blockage in the transfer line caused a build-up of pressure in the emulsion pig. This caused the rear plate welds to fail, and rear plate swung around and hit the victim. “The issue here, and what industry needs to be very aware of, is that the…

Air New Zealand’s Nelson-based regional aircraft maintenance facility and the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology (NMIT) have finalised an agreement that will see them work together to train aircraft engineers in the Nelson region. Air New Zealand Regional Maintenance Limited (ANZRML) and the tertiary education provider signed a Memorandum of Understanding earlier in the year to explore the development of a pathway for school leavers wanting to enter the aircraft maintenance industry. Today this joint project came to life with Air New Zealand and NMIT committing to a five year partnership and announcing a joint training programme for engineers in…

Wellington Institute of Technology (WelTec) engineering and ICT degree, diploma and graduate diploma students are gearing up to exhibit their leading edge projects undertaken in conjunction with industry. The event is being held at WelTec’s Petone campus from 5pm on 10 November. One graduating student is young engineer Adam Webber who will be showcasing his work which could greatly enhance how concrete buildings are constructed. Adam is nearing completion of a Bachelor of Engineering Technology degree at WelTec and has already been employed by Don Thomson Consulting Engineers Ltd. Adam’s final year project has been selected for the WelTec Engineering…

BusinessNZsays Labour's proposal to tax employers who are not providing training would bea blunt instrument that would not fix the problem of skills shortages. ChiefExecutive Kirk Hope said the real problem is that many employers can't find NewZealanders to employ. "Theunderlying problem is that many employers can't get New Zealand staff, whetherskilled or unskilled – and if they can't get them, they can't train them." Hesaid the proposal raises the issue of whether small businesses have thecapacity to be able to deliver training. "NewZealand businesses are practically all small businesses and they are not set upto be training establishments. A…

New Zealand was the first country to embrace inflation targeting, along with a raft of other polices that have come to be known as the broad neoliberal policy approach. In contrast to the northern hemisphere in New Zealand many of these changes were championed by the left of politics, and has become the entrenched position, for the most part, across our political spectrum for the past thirty odd years. Has this period of political thought delivered the promised well balanced improvements in our economic wellbeing, and what has been the outcome for the productive sectors of our economy? What happened…

Otago Polytechnic has come up with a boost for women wanting to get into the male-dominated fields of engineering and IT. Recognising that women are under-represented in these industries, Otago Polytechnic has created two scholarships, each worth $1000 for every year of study. Director of Communications, Mike Waddell, says it’s important to promote inclusion in all programmes. "Otago Polytechnic values our responsibility in society. If we can support women into under-represented areas of study, it’s better for the community as a whole." Both the IT and Engineering industries are on New Zealand Immigration’s skill shortage list for long term shortages.…