Written by Greg Campbell, chief executive of Ravensdown who  says everyone wants to say they tried to leave the planet in better shape. Greg Campbell says everyone wants to say they tried to leave the planet in better shape.

Dec 20,  2017  - The incoming government has hit the ground running but will face many obstacles in 2018 as it seeks to sustain a stable economy, leading New Zealand economic forecaster BERL says. The Treasury’s half-year economic and fiscal update had all the hallmarks of a sizable mini-Budget, BERL chief economist Dr Ganesh Nana says. The update confirms pre-election calculations and conclusions that, while a tight fit with little wriggle room, there are no multi-billion-dollar holes and the package is consistent with the incoming government’s self-imposed Budget responsibility rules. “The other big shift signalled by the incoming government relates…

Dec 14, 2017  - The New Zealand Productivity Commission today released its draft report - Measuring and improving state sector productivity.  “The state sector spends more than $40 billion every year on public services. Measuring productivity is essential for knowing if the money is being well spent.” Says Chair of the Productivity Commission, Mr. Murray Sherwin. “Constantly improving productivity across an economy is the essential source of improved incomes and wellbeing. While most businesses have a pretty good idea of their productivity performance, the public sector is much less likely to focus on its productivity. In part, that is because…

Nov 24,  2017  -  The OECD Digital Economy Outlook examines and documents the evolutions and emerging opportunities and challenges in the digital economy. It highlights how OECD countries and partner economies are taking advantage of ICTs and the Internet to meet their public policy objectives.  You can read the full report online here http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264276284-en with a summary of New Zealand highlights here http://www.oecd.org/newzealand/sti-scoreboard-2017-new-zealand.pdf   | Source: The OECD  ||  November 24,  2017   |||      

Better than expected balance of payments figures out this morning underscore the strength of both the services and goods sectors of the New Zealand economy, Finance Minister Steven Joyce says. New Zealand's current account deficit narrowed to $1.6 billion in the June 2017 quarter, $1.2 billion lower than in the previous quarter. This is mainly driven by the services sector, with a surplus of $1.3 billion, the highest surplus on record. New Zealand’s current account deficit is 2.8 per cent of GDP in the June year, down from 2.9 per cent in the last quarter, ahead of market forecasts for…

Goods and Services Trade by Country: Year ended June 2017 – for more data and analysis Goods and Services Trade by Country: Year ended June 2017 – Media Release New Zealand’s two-way trade with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was $15.2 billion in the June 2017 year, Stats NZ said today. Goods and services exported to ASEAN countries totalled $6.3 billion, and imports totalled $8.9 billion. New Zealand’s trade deficit with the combined ASEAN countries was $2.6 billion. ASEAN, established in August 1967, had Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand as original members. Countries that joined later…

Economic Development Minister Simon Bridges has joined Taranaki councils and the business community to launch an economic development strategy for the region. The Minister is in New Plymouth today to join the local community at the launch of Tapuae Roa - Make Way for Taranaki, which provides direction for the region’s economy. “Taranaki’s economy is mostly based on the oil, gas, dairy, manufacturing and other sectors. This strategy will build on this through boosting skills and enterprise to grow Taranaki into a modern, high-value economy," Mr Bridges says. “While the region has a noteworthy technology profile, the strategy also highlights…

Today, the Productivity Commission published its final report on the Tertiary Sector. At the same time, the OECD Environmental Performance Review of New Zealand strongly highlighted the need for a fundamental change in our approach to building wealth sustainably in this country. The need to create an effective education system that can provide much needed skills to facilitate growth and innovation in high-value activities, such as manufacturing, connect these reports, say the New Zealand Manufacturers and Exporters Association (NZMEA). “The OECD report clearly shows that with New Zealand having the second-highest level of greenhouse gas emissions per GDP unit in…

  The New Zealand economy continued to grow solidly in the September quarter, posting a higher than expected 1.1 per cent growth rate for the quarter and 3.5 per cent over the last year, Finance Minister Steven Joyce says. “New Zealand’s focus on developing a strong and open economy is delivering good results for Kiwi families, especially relative to most of the rest of the developed world,” Mr Joyce says. New Zealand’s economic growth in the year to September was the fifth strongest in the OECD ahead of Australia (1.8 per cent), the USA (1.6 per cent), Canada (1.3 per…

The Government is committed to building on its proven track record of strong economic and fiscal management, Acting Finance Minister Steven Joyce says. “New Zealand is in an enviable position compared with most developed countries,” Mr Joyce says. “We are making good economic progress. We’re achieving steady growth, keeping debt well under control, and delivering fiscal surpluses. “The Government’s fiscal priorities remain unchanged. We’ll continue to keep a tight rein on spending to drive growing OBEGAL surpluses and reduce net debt to around 20 per cent of GDP in 2020.” Mr Joyce says the Kaikōura earthquakes last month highlighted the…