The SME Stream

The Prime Minister ponders today’s OCR announcement, tomorrow’s Budget, Labour’s own goal over horses and ducks, and the NZ First threat in Hawke’s Bay.

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A significant slice of the NZX50 reports earnings this week, including heavyweights Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, Ryman Healthcare and Goodman Property. 

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If you can do something in KiwiSaver that will make people go that will make this a better place for my children, that's an effective political strategy' 

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Tony Alexander, independent economist, joins the show.

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The Reserve Bank Governor says she's mindful of the weak economy, as she weighs up Official Cash Rate settings.

Anna Breman made the final call to keep the OCR unchanged at 2.25 percent today.

The Monetary Policy Committee had been evenly split on hiking or holding, and is now signalling it'll go up in September.

Breman says they consider the factors pushing inflation up, but also the weak economy and labour market that could send it downwards.

"We aim to keep inflation low and stable, but we should also avoid unnecessary volatility in the economy."

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Banks and economists expect the Official Cash Rate to hold at 2.25% despite global uncertainty.  

It's the first OCR announcement since conflict erupted in the Middle East, with September the hot pick for when the rate will next lift. 

Co-operative Bank CEO Mark Wilshire told Ryan Bridge he expects a cautious approach by both the Reserve Bank and the Government in the coming days.  

He says it'll be interesting to see the bank's outlook and Budget announcements tomorrow, which will probably be fairly constrained in terms of spending. 

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Accountants are hopeful the Government will use the Budget to do something about the secret little wealth tax those with offshore investments are currently paying.

As it stands, most people with more than $50,000 directly invested in assets offshore, including shares in companies listed on stock exchanges, need to pay tax on a portion of the value of their investments, regardless of if they receive income from those investments.

Those who invest in shares in New Zealand companies or New Zealand-domiciled funds only need to pay tax on the income they receive from their investments.

NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny explained further.

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The Reserve Bank has opted to keep the OCR on hold at 2.25 percent today.

Most markets had priced in a hold, but the views on what will happen next are split, especially considering concerns around inflation. 

Milford Asset Management's Remy Wisenberg explained further.

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We catch up with the senior journalist at BusinessDesk, as we say goodbye to the 2025/2026 dairy season, which he says was anything but dull. And tomorrow we find out Fontarra’s opening forecast milk price for the 26/27 season.

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Something doesn't really add up on business investment in this country, says Ryan Bridge.

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