Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward.
Cost of living changing “from squeeze to crush”
Westpac’s latest economic bulletin, titled From Squeeze to Crush, says that high inflation has cut spending power while borrowing costs continue to rise and the value of household assets falls.
Housing value drop slows down
CoreLogic NZ’s fourth-quarter property market update showed a 0.2 per cent drop in national home values in December, leading many experts to wonder if the housing market is stabilising.
Consider joining a co-op to boost your business
The government is highlighting the benefits of joining a co-operative. They are an excellent way to work with other business owners with similar business objectives, share costs, increase buying power and improve market reach.
Honey industry and government backs society’s efforts to protect the mānuka name
The New Zealand Manuka Honey Appellation Society has been working to protect the term since 2015. They want to trademark the term mānuka honey and have refiled court proceedings in the UK and EU.
Opportunity for investors is possible in uncertain markets
Economists say that investors should be aware that the worst economic news has already been priced into the market, so there could be some opportunity for new investors – but proceed cautiously.
Migration gain reported for the first time in many months
New data from Stats NZ shows that at least 6000 more people entered the country in November than left. It could signal the end of significant migrant departures, which have exceeded arrivals since early 2021.
Customers say that Delta’s new route is welcome competition
Delta will debut a Los Angeles-Auckland service in October, taking on Air New Zealand as the only airline flying the non-stop route.
Microsoft throws its weight behind OpenAI
Microsoft is making a multibillion dollar investment in the artificial intelligence startup OpenAI, which makes ChatGPT, DALL-E and other tools that can write readable text and create images.
Inflation probably isn’t over yet
An economist with Infometrics expects inflation to stay high, at 7.2 per cent per annum, which would be a further 1.4 per cent increase quarter on quarter.
Climate activists bring cease and desist letter to Davos
Greta Thunberg and other climate activists slammed prominent business leaders for investing in fossil fuels and prioritising short-term profits over people affected by the climate crisis. They brought a cease and desist letter signed by nearly 900,000 people to the World Economic Forum in Davos.
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