New Zealand researchers could provide the answer to the opioid epidemic.
Victoria University has received a $1.2 million grant to advance the development of a safer opioid alternative to the pre-clinical phase.
Associate Professor Bronwyn Kivel told Mike Hosking one in five New Zealand adults suffer from chronic pain, and half of those report current treatments don't offer much relief.
She says they're aiming to develop a double-whammy drug that relieves pain, and isn't as addictive.
Kivell says they know a lot about the anti-addiction properties of the compound they're studying and that's why they're investigating it.
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NATO's agreed to a fundamental shift to how it responds to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The alliance has wrapped up a summit in Madrid, agreeing to set up a permanent army headquarters in Poland and make an unshakeable commitment to Ukraine
Jacinda Ardern has addressed the summit, and says the war is the single biggest issue facing the continent.
Ardern is now on her way to Brussels, where she'll continue talks on a free trade agreement with the EU.
Former trade negotiator Charles Finny told Mike Hosking what Europe is proposing wouldn't be good for our dairy and meat sectors.
“They’re talking about continuing quotas, limiting the amount we can send and also tariffs within those quotas. They might be actually below what we’re trading right now.”
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We have a couple of trends in the small business sector that are performing stronger than a couple of international heavyweights.
Xero has released their Small Business Index for May, revealing small business wages and jobs grew during the month.
Wages were up 5.3 percent, the fastest pace since January 2017 while the number of jobs grew 4.1 percent.
That's better than the likes of the UK and Australia.
Managing director for Xero New Zealand Craig Hudson joined Mike Hosking.
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We're past the halfway point of the year.
So far, sharemarkets are predicting a major economic slowdown due to effects from Covid-19 and inflation rates.
The first six months of this year is one of the worst starts in history for shares and bonds.
Milford Asset Management portfolio manager Stephen Johnston joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.
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New analysis from Infometrics is pointing to higher levels of infrastructure investment over the next decade.
$172 billion is expected to be invested by 2031.
The money is expected to go into roading, electricity generation, and water systems in particular.
Infometrics principal economist Brad Olsen joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.
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ASB and ANZ are both pausing their mortgage lending again for anyone who has less than a 20 percent deposit.
Meanwhile, Westpac is now limiting availability.
The three banks reckon they're coming up against the limits the Reserve Bank has set for them on the amount of high-risk lending they're allowed to do.
NZ Herald Wellington Business Editor Jenée Tibshraeny joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.
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Apprehension for a New Zealand-European Union trade deal don't bode well.
The Prime Minister is heading to Brussels tomorrow after Nato meetings in Madrid, and will hold talks with EU trade negotiators.
Despite discussions continuing for roughly four years, there's been no win yet.
Democracy Project international analyst Geoffrey Miller told Heather du Plessis-Allan the rumours around the deal aren't good.
He says the EU just doesn't seem to want to budge on giving New Zealand substantial market access for meat and dairy.
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Air New Zealand is making some big changes to its cabin.
It's the airline's biggest cabin transformation in almost 20 years.
The changes include set refurbishments in Economy, including their new Skynest sleeping pods, and big changes to Premium Economy and Business Premier, as well as their new Business Premier Lux.
NZ Herald Deputy Business Editor Grant Bradley joined Simon Barnett and James Daniels.
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Contact Energy says potential electricity shortages shouldn't worry people.
It follows concerns being averted both last night and last week, after warnings there were risks of insufficient power generation and reserve to meet demand.
Chief Executive Mike Fuge told Mike Hosking we're never close to the edge, as the country has a robust power system and recent events show it responds well.
“Sometimes unusual things happen, Transpower as a prudent operator steps in and says we need a bit of generation, we need a bit of demand response.”
It's unclear if overnight outages in Wellington's Miramar and Seatoun were related to the Transpower warnings.
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The FTA agreements with the EU are going down to the wire.
Jacinda Ardern and Trade Minister Damien O'Connor are in Europe to meet with EU leaders to secure a good deal.
New Zealand already has a positive FTA with the UK, but the EU aren't offering us much of a great deal with dairy and meat.
The Country host joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.
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