Category: Business

Source: Radio New Zealand

Lower Hutt businesses say they’re swiftly losing cash, and one’s shut up shop, as roadworks roll on in the city centre.

Authorities are sorry for the disruption, but say the work is essential.

Hutt City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council and the Transport Agency are running multiple projects to future-proof service infrastructure, improve flood protection, develop the CBD and improve transport connection.

The obstacle course of road cones and closures has caused gridlock and delays, and now businesses are bearing the brunt.

A chunk of the work involves ripping up a roundabout at the Queens Drive/High Street intersection, which began on 2 March and will run until December, shutting the road.

Jinuka Paranavithana runs Lakdiv Supermarket right on the roundabout and said there was a slump the day the works began, with takings down 50 percent.

The cluster of shops in the area are now effectively tucked down a dead end.

Paranavithana was not confident the supermarket would last until the works were completed, so he was looking for leases elsewhere and could be forced out to Naenae.

A few doors down, Raquib Gondal had already shut his kebab shop for good.

He also reported a 50 percent drop in business, saying only the regulars would pop in, once a week at best.

“I feel really bad, because when I bought this business … I’ve taken all the money from my friends and family and we gathered the money … just to have a secure kind of income,” he said.

Gondal didn’t want to close, but he was getting into debt, he said.

“Opening it for longer, it will be … really a disaster for me.”

Another stretch of High Street is shut for four weeks, right outside City Green fruit and vege shop.

Owner Patrick Gao said he was only just hanging on, also reporting 50 percent less takings.

“I’m not making enough to pay my bills, my rent, my wages … tough going,” he said.

He may have to consider closing, but thinks he can stick around another month or two, with the community behind him.

Gao put out a plea on social media on Tuesday, asking for local support to help get him through.

On Wednesday morning, Rachael Trudgeon answered the call, and walked out of the store carrying a box full of produce.

She urged others to do the same, noting the deserted street.

“Just get out there, support our local shops that we have here, especially the small business owners, they are struggling so we want to help them out as much as we can.”

Across the road at cafe Espresso High, barista Rane Magno said the cafe was definitely quieter with a lack of parking.

“Nobody wants to drive in this corner of the Hutt any more,” she said.

“On the flip side, we’ve been able to see how our community’s really supported us, and our regulars have come in and made their efforts.”

Works essential for Hutt resilience

Many spoken to by RNZ believed the roadworks were necessary but it was too much all at once.

Lower Hutt Mayor Ken Laban said there was not much council could do.

“I can’t take people’s pain away, if I was … affected by the business, or I was stuck in traffic trying to get mum to the hospital for her appointment, equally I would be frustrated and angry and all of those kinds of things.

“We are just trying the best that we can to minimise the disruption, but this is a hugely inconvenient time for everybody.”

The work included a “once in a generation upgrade” of flood defences to protect the city, including the hospital and thousands of homes, said Laban.

Greater Wellington Regional Council transport committee chair Ros Connelly said disruption was certain no matter how the work was carried out, and the parties involved had chosen “the most efficient work programme from a cost perspective and also from a logistics perspective.”

“We absolutely understand that the roadworks are disruptive and we’re really sorry for the impact that this is having on businesses and commuters.

“But unfortunately, the works are essential to improving safety and flood resilience and reliability for everyone who uses the road.”

Once the work was done, the city would be better protected and connected, Connelly said.

The transport agency said it was continually considering whether the work could be sped up, and there would be night work in some places.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Rising oil prices are expecting to put pressure on prices across New Zealand.

But from food to coffee and petrol to clothes, what are sectors expecting?

RNZ set out to ask.

Petrol

Mike Newton, spokesperson for fuel monitoring app Gaspy, said if crude oil prices were to remain at Thursday afternoon levels, after rising 10 percent overnight, the national average price for 91 would be about $3.30 a litre.

That was about 15c more than the average at the time but some petrol stations were already charging at that level.

“Some economists and analysts are talking about crude rising ot US$200 a barrel and if that were to happen a $4 national average would not be out of the question. Early on in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, crude topped out at US$119 a barrel.”

Restaurants

Nicola Waldren, general manager of the Restaurants Association said it had been talking to restaurant and cafe members over the past few weeks.

“What we’re hearing at this stage is that significant price changes haven’t come through to them yet so they are in a bit of a wait and see. There are still a lot of unknowns about how long the impacts are going to go on for but we are firmly of the view that prices will get passed through to businesses.”

She said the association was advising restaurants to look at their menus, keep ahead of supplier bills and be across price changes coming through so they could adapt if they needed to.

“How much it might change is a difficult thing to answer because all the businesses are different, they’ve got different menus, they’ve got different supply chains… but hospitality businesses are small, they’re local businesses, we’re slowly coming out of some really tough years and now we’re facing this unexpected headwind.

“If it’s a sustained period of time when those cost pressures come on then we can expect some changes to pricing.”

She said restaurants were aware many households were squeezed in terms of what they could afford to pay but many hospitality businesses were working with such small margins that they would need to pass on increases.

Waldren said some businesses were concerned about being able to access products.

“Businesses are looking at are there ways to adapt their menus, source alternative ingredients… there’s a big focus on sourcing local from local suppliers that will probably help to mitigate some impacts but I think the fuel price changes are going to affect the whole supply chain.”

Coffee

Richard Corney of Flight Coffee said coffee bean prices had dropped from record highs but were still high compared to the past.

But there were concerns about the cost of everything else rising to push up the price of coffee in New Zealand cafes, he said.

“We’re already seeing shipping cost skyrocket back to pandemic levels, adding huge differential costs per kilo to landed coffee imports in NZ.

“Beyond that, packaging companies have alerted us to increase in packaging costs due to the constraint of plastics derived from oil.

“And to top it all off, in the coming months Brazil will need fertilisers to fed next year’s crop, and there’s major constraints on this due to the conflict in the Middle East – so what’s in effect been a great harvest out of Brazil, now faces existential threats that may very well force the commodity price higher or keep it at elevated levels.”

Fuel shortages could also make it hard to move coffee from storage locations to where it needed to be, he said.

But he said coffee prices were already getting to their limit in terms of what consumer would pay.

“We’re discovering, if not some parts of it’s been discovered, the ceiling of what consumers are able to pay … it becomes a point where the market will dictate its value.

“We’ve asked a lot from our customers and they’ve responded wonderfully but you can only go so high, right? You can only pass on so much before it becomes unsustainable.”

Construction

Auckland University of Technology construction expert John Tookey said the cost of building would rise.

“Anything that involves either the formation of materials or the transportation of materials is going to be massively affected … the kicker as far as construction materials are concerned is simply the fact that they tend to be high volume, low value and they are very energy intensive to transport.”

He said prices would probably rise in anticipation.

“Stockists start hedging knowing that it’s going to start creeping up… they’ll start to feed that into their quoted prices.

“We’re already seeing the cost of diesel at the pump going up and as soon as diesel starts going up then transportation of materials goes up and up and up.”

He said he did not want to guess at how much construction prices would rise.

“I think that sort of prediction would age like milk in the sun.”

Retail

Carolyn Young, chief executive of Retail NZ, said the sector was already seeing increases in distribution costs and for things such as couriers.

“It’s a higher impact on goods and services being moved around the country because a lot of freight companies are using trucks that run on diesel.”

She said supermarkets, grocery retailers, fruit and vegetable outlets and bakeries would have increased transport costs and might not be able to absorb them.

“Some will and some won’t. It will depend on the profitability of the business and the reserves they may have,”

People bringing in goods from overseas would also be affected.

“In terms of grocery,. they’ve got good supply of stock in the distribution centres but stock is always coming in.”

For things such as apparel or DIY or jewellery, she said, freight ships were staying in Singapore longer to make sure they were 100 percent full.

“The longer they take to leave port and fill up, the higher the cost of the fuel being passed on.

“If you are importing goods they’re going to land in Auckland, Tauranga or Lyttleton then they’re going to be distributed to your site or sites – so there’s two lots of costs that can be passed on a that point as well because you’ve got costs coming in internationally and then you’ve got domestic costs from the price of fuel in New Zealand.”

She said prices would rise if it was a sustained conflict.

“Retailers that are able to absorb as long as they can – it will impact their margins long-term and their profitability.”

Earlier, Infometrics chief forecaster Gareth Kiernan said fishing was particularly exposed to oil price rises.

BNZ chief economist Mike Jones said food prices were likely to rise faster but it was hard to quantify. He expected general inflation to peak at 3.8 percent in the second quarter.

Uber

Uber said fuel price increases were having an effect across a wide range of industries, including for driver partners and delivery people who used the Uber and Uber Eats app to earn.

“Uber is actively monitoring conditions as they evolve and regularly reviews ways to support driver partners and delivery people as circumstances change.

“We are always looking for ways we can continue to support them, including our Uber Pro programme which offers discounts on fuel and EV charging, as well as other savings to help reduce their expenses.”

Supermarket delivery

At Woolworths, a spokesperson said it was closely monitoring the situation in the Middle East.

“We have no current plans to change our delivery fees.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealand is preparing for a prolonged conflict in the Middle East as attacks on the world’s largest natural gasfield in Pars create even more uncertainty at the pump.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has warned the fuel situation could get worse, before it gets better.

Brent Crude prices surged to US$109 a barrel on Thursday following the attacks, prompting motorists to fill up before prices got even higher.

Some people were unlucky, arriving at the pump after it had run dry.

At an NPD in Christchurch, many were nervous about how much a trip to the service station could soon cost.

“I’m currently studying, so it’s not really helpful. I live 40 minutes out of town and then commuting, and so it’s kind of like a bit of a sting in the butt trying to get through study, and it’s like, let’s add more stress,” one student said.

Another person had been checking prices daily: “I’ve been keeping an eye on it, looking at the apps and just checking each day whether or not today’s the day I should go fuel up.”

While others were more optimistic, and said they had just started to take the bus.

As of Thursday, New Zealand had 41.3 days worth of petrol, 47 days of diesel and 49 days of Jet Fuel.

Luxon assured New Zealanders officials were doing what they could to prepare for a fuel shortage.

“Like all New Zealanders, we hope that the conflict is ending quickly, but hope is not a plan, and so we are preparing for the worst case scenario where the conflict is prolonged,” Luxon said.

But energy analyst David Keat did not think New Zealand would run out of fuel for long periods of time, if at all.

Keat said the country should be ok.

“I imagine we might miss a few cargos, but in terms of the physical supply, I can’t see us running out for long periods, if at all.

“The price though is a different thing, because everybody is bidding for these cargos and it’s a seller’s market, so the price could go very high.”

The government would consider more details in the fuel escalation level plan next week.

It had four levels of concern, similar to the levels seen during Covid-19.

Rural Contractors New Zealand said its members were already being hit hard, with one larger contractor’s fuel bill rising by $5000 a day.

CEO Andrew Olsen said the agriculture industry needed to be a priority.

“Everyone’s important and naturally will say we are, but I think this is Covid 2.0 and agriculture received dispensations to continue to operate and it’s important, it’s our GDP, 20 percent of it.”

Olsen said the conflict and resulting fuel shortage had come at the worst time.

“It’s a very busy part of the year, we’ve got the maize harvest in full swing in the North Island and we’ve still got a lot of grass work occurring elsewhere, big machines, lots of fuel consumption.

“We’ve also got the viticulture harvest right now and we’ve also got the kiwifruit harvest,” he said

Business Canterbury CEO Leeann Watson believed there were takeaways from the Covid-19 response that should be considered.

“There’s quite a lot of learning’s here from Covid. You know, in some cases we were quite slow to do some planning and you know while we in particular as Business Canterbury at this stage we’re not being alarmist.

“We think it’s really important that businesses do start to do some planning and thinking about the options that they do have moving forward.”

Watson said it was crucial officials kept businesses informed.

The government’s next update on the fuel crisis will be on Monday.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Taxpayers who have debt for the 2023 and 2024 tax years are being given another option to avoid paying penalties to Inland Revenue.

As part of an amendment to the Taxation Bill, a pilot programme is being launched that will allow people with tax debt to settle it via tax pooling, if they meet eligibility criteria.

They will have until 1 October this year to enter an arrangement with a tax pooling provider, and then must settle the debt by 1 October 2027.

Tax pooling allows people to smooth out their tax payments and borrow from those who have overpaid their tax as required.

Tax Traders co-founder Nicola Taylor said the programme would be a big help to people with tax debt.

“There’s $1.2 billion in income tax debt across the two tax periods that this amendment is focused on. Tax debt is not about not wanting to comply. It’s actually usually about cash flow and timing.”

Inland Revenue has been chasing overdue tax hard in recent years.

If people had a tax bill they should approach a tax pooling provider with their debt, Taylor said.

“What they won’t be hit with is the late payment penalties and the use of money interest that they would have been hit with otherwise.

“Let’s say a taxpayer has a $10,000 unpaid income tax bill… by the legislation and using Tax Traders, you’ll be able to save about $800 of late payment penalties and use of money interest that otherwise you’d be hit with. And you know, $800 is not nothing.

“And the core tax gets paid … I think IRD’s been really sensitive and empathetic here and also very innovative. So I think we should, you know, I think there’s much to applaud IRD for taking this approach.”

The amendment also removes a tax issue that affects infrastructure investment.

Thin capitalisation rules stop multinational companies from allocating an excessive proportion of their debt to to New Zealand to affect the tax they have to pay.

But they can interfere in situations where there is a large amount of debt associated with an infrastructure project and some interest deductions can be denied even when the debt level is not normally considered excessive.

The Corporate Taxpayers Group told the government this was sometimes stopping foreign investment in New Zealand projects.

The new rules provide an exemption from the thin capitalisation rules for investments in qualifying infrastructure assets to the extent they are funded by limited-recourse third-party debt.

Deloitte partner Robyn Walker said it was likely that transport infrastructure, water, energy and telecommunications might be included in the projects that could opt into the rules.

Corporate Taxpayers Group chair John Payne said it was pleasing to see the rules progressing.

“We regularly see that tax rules can be an impediment to investment in important infrastructure, and these amendments help clear a barrier and that is why the Corporate Taxpayers Group has been involved in consultation on these rules.”

Revenue Minister SImon Watts said the change removed a barrier to make it easier to access capital and talent.

“New Zealand’s thin capitalisation rules limit the amount of tax-deductible debt that foreign investors can put into New Zealand investments. These rules prevent income being shifted offshore and protect our tax base.

“However, there is a risk that these rules can unduly disincentivise investment, particularly in capital-intensive infrastructure projects that are typically funded by large amounts of debt.

“The government is making changes to ensure that rules strike a balance between protecting the tax base while not discouraging investment in infrastructure.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Higher fuel costs mean higher transport costs, and that means higher prices across the board – and that’s a hard pill to swallow for Kiwis three years into a cost-of-living crisis.

Kiwis are already feeling the expensive ripple effects of the war in Iran – and economists are warning that the real impact is only just beginning.

What started as a distant geopolitical conflict has quickly landed squarely on our country’s economy, driving up fuel costs, squeezing household budgets, and threatening to slow growth.

If it continues, New Zealand could be staring down the barrel of another recession.

“So this sort of shock, if it gets worse, will definitely increase the risk of a recession here,” Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr tells The Detail.

“And we have only just gotten out of recession, so to fall back in would be horrendous for households and businesses.”

At the centre of the crisis is oil.

Global prices have surged past US$100 a barrel as fighting disrupts supply routes through the Strait of Hormuz – a chokepoint for about 20 percent of the world’s oil.

And for New Zealand, which imports almost all of its fuel, the effect has been immediate.

Petrol prices are already climbing rapidly, with forecasts that they could push toward $4 a litre – or higher – if the conflict escalates.

And when fuel costs rise, everything that relies on transport follows – from groceries to clothing to construction materials.

“The direct impact that we are seeing right now is the rise in petrol prices, and that affects, I would say, every household, particularly those on lower incomes who are forced to drive to work,” Kerr says.

“It is just another cost that they have to wear. And they have been in a cost-of-living crisis for the past three years.”

He warns that the conflict could push inflation higher while slowing growth, with Kiwi households already tightening spending, cutting discretionary purchases, and reducing travel and fuel use. Delaying big buys and trading down to cheaper brands are likely on the horizon.

“Yes, we are going to see a spike in inflation, but what I don’t agree with is the commentary that that automatically leads to a rate hike. I disagree.

“That is only going to put greater pressure on a household that is already under pressure. That would be the exact thing not to do … for me, the bigger risk is that households get hurt, the economy doesn’t recover, and the central bank may be needed to come in and provide support.”

He said economists entered the year “quite optimistic, because we had been banging the table for a long time, because the Reserve Bank had not cut interest rates to a level that was actually stimulatory and helpful for the recovery.

“They finally got there in November last year, took them far too long to get there, but they got there. We came into this year saying, ‘this is it, we are going to recover, the settings are about right, let’s go, c’mon let’s get some growth happening’, and mid-way through that sentence, we were cut off with missile strikes in Iran.

“It’s just another international shock that we have to deal with, and it’s just another headwind that all households and businesses have to face into.

“It’s hard for households to pay the food bill and power bill, which is up 35 percent on the year, petrol prices, which will be up a similar sort of amount, it is very, very difficult.

“We need to see policymakers stepping in to help, not hinder. So calls for rate hikes from the RBNZ [Reserve Bank] are tone deaf.”

On this episode, The Detail also speaks to Retail NZ chief executive Carolyn Young, who says retailers and consumers throughout the country are feeling the fallout of the war.

She says prices for goods and services will increase and “we will see that relatively soon”.

“We are seeing increases in insurance … increases in the fuel to get the ships to New Zealand,” she says. “Those additional costs are being passed on to the retailers and, at some point, those costs will be passed on to consumers.”

She says, right now, it’s “a really uncertain time for everyone”.

“Ultimately, uncertainty is not good for business. And I think that’s the thing we have to remember, and right now everyone is in a state of flux and uncertainty.

“And for any business owner, whether you are a retailer or other business, it’s going to have an impact on your sense of how you are going to move forward, and therefore it will have an impact on your profitability and ability to spend money in other areas.”

She fears some businesses might not survive the war.

“It will be difficult for people, and we will see some people who are perhaps a bit more pessimistic about what the future holds and may decide to close the store, and there will be others who will try to hang in there.”

She says recovery will depend on how long the conflict lasts.

Economists say a short conflict will see a sharp but temporary spike in prices, while a prolonged war will mean sustained inflation, weaker growth, and reduced spending.

And an escalation? Enter the risk of recession.

For now, the message from economists is simple: New Zealand may be far from the conflict, but it is not insulated from its consequences, because a war a world away involving oil doesn’t stay overseas for long.

Check out how to listen to and follow The Detail here.

You can also stay up-to-date by liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

There is more discord in the music industry over the government helping fund two Robbie Williams concerts.

It has contributed an undisclosed amount from its $70 million Major Events and Tourism Package, $40 million of which is to secure large-scale international events that will attract international visitors.

But some in the industry say it is corporate welfare and believe commercially viable big-name acts would still come here without the funding.

Rob Warner, who has been involved in the local music industry for over 30 years, told Checkpoint the government is being taken for a ride by big players.

“It should worry both taxpayers and anyone who likes live events or values music culture. The schemes, as happened in Australia, have taught the biggest promoters they can hold events to ransom and the minister and MBIE apparently don’t recognise they’re being taken for a ride. Or they’re more concerned about looking good in the lead up to this year’s election.”

Dion Brant is CEO Of Frontier Touring, the company bringing Robbie Williams.

He told Checkpoint the money would not go directly to the popstar but instead make it viable to put on two Aotearoa shows, contributing to around half of what the freight to and from Australia and New Zealand will cost.

He did not disclose how much the government had put towards the shows, and said it was commercial in confidence.

While he said the money wasn’t paying Williams directly to come and play, the money makes it “worthwhile” for the star to play in New Zealand.

“Robbie Williams has a lot of places he can go and play concerts around the world, and these major concerts generate a really big economic impact for the cities and the places they play.

“He’s popular in a lot of places around the world. He has to prioritise that time, and he has to work out where he can get the best return for the machine that is Robbie Williams.”

Brant said putting on the show came with many costs, and the government contribution was a way of ensuring the costs don’t outweigh the returns.

He could not confirm whether Williams would have been able to play the shows without the funding but said it would have been “touch and go”.

“It certainly helps make the balance or the ledger look better, then when we put the options in front of Robbie, it allows him and his people to make a decision.

“[It’s] a way in which the returns on the incredible cost to get there and play there and for the infrastructure is able to be recouped without relying on lots of people buying lots of really expensive tickets.”

Brant said the benefit returned the taxpayer with the livelihood international shows bring to Aotearoa’s shores.

“Cities are alive when these shows are on. You can’t sit in the foyer of a hotel, you can’t sit in a cafe, you can’t walk around the shops without seeing, you know, hundreds of people wearing a T-shirt and dining in the restaurants and eating in the cafes and catching the Ubers and the taxis.”

While each show was expected to bring a $3.50 return for every $1 invested, Brant said he didn’t have any numbers reflecting how much of this would come from international visitors.

Attracting international visitors with big events is a key part of the fund’s purpose.

Brant said Frontier pitched the Williams concert to the government using results from past concerts.

“[What the] audience profiles were like at those concerts, and the budgets for these concerts. So therefore, what we’re projecting in terms of audience, sales, costs.”

Frontier will report back to the government after the two shows.

“We’ll report back who’s come to the shows, where they’ve come from, there’ll be some surveys on how long they’ve spent in the city, if they’re from out of the city.”

Splore Festival producer Fred Kublikowski applied for event funding through the Major Events and Tourism Fund but was denied.

Kublikowski told Checkpoint there needs to be more transparency around the fund.

“I think when taxpayer money is involved and it’s going into a pool that’s going to, international interests, if there’s no clarity around that, people ask questions.”

Kublikowski said there have been a countless number of successful international shows both in and outside of New Zealand without the government funding.

While it was hard to say whether the government was being influenced by these multinational promoters, Kublikowski said similar things had occurred in Australia.

“There’s been examples where funding’s been made available and it’s easy for large conglomerates to access that.

“Certainly easier than local homegrown events without the resources or the backup of that kind of admin facility.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

The sale of one of New Zealand’s oldest running independent craft brewery is a deal worth toasting, according to those close to the transaction.

Sunshine Brewing – including its iconic Gisborne Gold brand – has been sold, saving the multi-award winning brewery from potential closure.

Taranaki’s Three Sister’s Brewery is taking over its East Coast cousin – for an undisclosed sum – “with the intention of keeping Sunshine alive, keeping the taproom trading, and protecting the legacy Sunshine has built in Gisborne”.

Legend has it surfers Geoff “Lumpy” Logan and Gerry Maude came up with idea for Sunshine Brewing while out catching waves in 1989, famously launching the lager Gisborne Gold – a 90s staple for uni students – in the process.

Current owner Martin Jakicevich and two mates, Mark Young and Peter Thorpe, bought Sunshine in 2013 and set about modernising it and creating a popular taproom.

Jakicevich had mixed feelings about letting it go.

“There’s been a lot of joy in getting the brand re-established and back on the map and talked about, so it’s sort of bittersweet to see it go, but at the same time I’m really pleased to see it go to a brewer and out there making some good beers and with a vision, so yeah, it is a bittersweet type thing.”

Martin Jakicevich would miss the great staff at the brewery and those eureka moments only brewing could provide.

“I’ll certainly miss the smell of the brew in the morning there’s no doubt about that. Walking into that place when there’s a brew going on is fantastic.

“It always comes down to this… when I try a new beer and the beer is fantastic that’s always been the best moments and we’ve had a few of them. That’s what I’ll miss those moments of saying ‘we nailed it’.”

Three Sister’s founder Joe Emans was a huge fan of Sunshine Brewing.

“We’ve got a lot of respect for Sunshine and what they’ve been doing. They’ve been going a long time I think they are the oldest independent craft brewery in the country particularly with Gisborne Gold which is a really well distributed beer and I think a lot of people have affection for that beer and we do and I do particularly, so we want to keep that legacy going independently.”

Emans said Sunshine would be a good fit for Three Sisters which recently crowdfunded about $400,000 to expand its brewing capacity.

“We can immediately make use of that additional capacity that they’ve got, so that relieves our production constraints here in New Plymouth.

“We’ve been exporting to China and that’s partly why we’ve reached our production constraint and I’ve reached out to our distributor there and they’ve said they’d be keen to distribute Sunshine in China as well so there should be an immediate up tick from that.”

Emans said it was likely higher volume production for both brands would take place in Gisborne while New Plymouth would focus small-batch seasonal beers.

“Our plan is simple: Sunshine stays Sunshine – a Gisborne brewery with its own identity – while Three Sisters provides the operational backbone and production capacity to support stability and growth.

Sunshine’s core brands and taproom would remain and Eman’s hopeful of retaining key staff.

‘Bold move’ expansions show a brewery on the up: Beer writer

Publisher of craft beer magazine Pursuit of Hoppiness Michael Donaldson said Sunshine Brewing’s owners had been looking for a sale and it was great another craft brewer had come in for it.

“Look Gisborne Gold is a hugely popular beer in the East Cape region and Sunshine Brewery are an incredible local brewery and they are New Zealand’s longest running independently owned craft brewery, so it’s a really vital part of the landscape.”

He said it was a significant step for Three Sisters.

“I can understand why someone would want to pick up Sunshine because their local strength is amazing plus they still have a presence in Wellington. You’ll find it on tap in a number of bars there, Gizzy Gold.

“Yeah, so it’s a bold move by Three Sisters and it sort of follows on from their expansion into Wellington recently where they opened a taproom. They’re a brewery on the up.”

Donaldson said Three Sister’s innovative crowdfunding approach and exports to China – which made up about 30 percent of sales by volume – underpinned its success.

“It’s massive. China is a huge country but it’s also got a strong appetite for beer and so they’re getting unique products. New Zealand beers, a lot of them made with New Zealand hops and that New Zealand Inc story.

“Each one of these small breweries that is delivering export orders to China, it’s a drop in their beer ocean, but at this end it’s hugely significant.”

Drinkers in New Plymouth were excited about the move.

Wellington visitor Vincent gave it the thumbs up.

“I hope it saves Gizzy Gold because my friends and I drink it quite a bit, so if it could keep going that would be really good.”

He was familiar with Three Sisters also.

“I’ve been travelling for a bit but one of my friends posted about Three Sisters opening up down there and we really like them at Beervarna so we’re quite excited about that.”

Andrew had dipped into the crowdfunding offer.

“I think it’s really amazing and Joe and the team have been very progressive in the way they’ve grown the business here and I think it’s going to be a great thing overall. They’re going to take care of the Sunshine legacy and do great things with it.”

Allan was not totally convinced.

“I’m not a great lager fan, but I’ve got a small shareholding from the last funding round, so yeah, it’s all good as far as that goes, but as far as the lager goes I’m more of a hazy guy.”

Beer fans on both sides of the North Island should have easy access to both Sunshine Brewing and Three Sisters brands in a couple of months.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Authors who missed out on a payment for having books in the library are receiving the money they are owed.

RNZ reported in February that 318 authors had received an email in error in July confirming they were registered for the Public Lending Right scheme, when they were not actually registered.

The Public Lending Right (PLR) scheme makes a payment to authors each year, when they have sufficient books in New Zealand libraries.

The payments are made in December from a government fund of $2.4 million. In 2025 there were 1541 registered and the per-book rate was $5.19.

Authors have to confirm their eligibility for payment every year, whether or not they have new books in libraries.

National librarian Te Pouhuaki Rachel Esson said in a statement on Thursday that 46 of those people had been identified as being eligible for a payment this year.

“We sincerely apologise for our failure to do that, and for the inconvenience it has caused.

“Authors are now being contacted directly regarding the outcome of our investigations and explaining next steps. We are reviewing the PLR administrative process, and the scheme’s usability to prevent this error from happening again.”

She said the 46 eligible authors who did not receive a payment had been offered the amount they would have received if their registration had been successfully processed.

“This payment comes from existing sources of National Library funding and is based on the 2025 book rate.”

Another 272 people had been contacted to confirm they were not eligible for a payment last year. Authors must have at least 50 copies of their book in a library to qualify.

“Our investigations have found that they were not eligible for the 2025 PLR round and/or did not attempt to register before 1 March 2025. Accordingly, they will not be receiving a payment in connection with the 2025 PLR round.

“We have had useful feedback from authors about how the registration process could be improved. A key recommendation from authors is an automated response in real-time to let them know that their registration has been received would resolve many concerns. In the absence of an automated email for the 2026 year, we have been manually sending acknowledgment of registration.

“The Public Lending Right Advisory Group, consisting of members from the New Zealand Society of Authors, the Library and Information Association, the Ministry of Culture and Heritage, and the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment, met in March to discuss the ongoing review of the PLR Scheme and will continue to do so over the coming months.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

A slow warming in the job market appears to be broadening out into a more meaningful market shift.

The latest SEEK employment report shows job ads rose 0.9 percent in February, the ninth consecutive monthly increase. It took annual ad growth to 12.2 percent, the strongest annual rise since 2022.

SEEK country manager Rob Clark said the growth was led by industries like construction, engineering and farming.

“If you track the last 18 months, we had a significant decline in job advertising, then it was pretty flat and now we’re seeing growth,” Clark said.

“What that says is that people are a bit more optimistic, they’re seeing some more growth opportunities, and typically that translates to hiring more people, and because we’re seeing it across most industries and most geographies, that implies that it’s a genuine market movement.”

The report shows there is less competition for the jobs being advertised, with applications per ad falling 2.4 percent from the month prior, off the peak seen in August last year.

Only a few sectors are in decline and they include retail and consumer products, as well as banking and financial services. All of the largest sectors saw improvement, according to SEEK’s report.

“The longer-term picture is roles in engineering, farming, construction, trades, healthcare are all growing at about 20 percent year-on-year,” Clark said.

“So they’re the key drivers of activity at the moment.”

Whether the momentum is likely to continue in the same direction is unclear, said Clark, although confidence could take a hit as a result of the Middle East conflict.

South Island regions still the engine driving jobs growth

The South Island showed some of the strongest growth year-on-year with Otago up 23 percent, Southland up 21.3 percent and West Coast up 20.9 percent and Canterbury up 20 percent.

“What we’re seeing is the South Island growing well ahead of everywhere else, and obviously they have a strong agricultural base,” Clark said.

“We’re seeing growth there driven by both a strong ag sector and population movement with a lot of internal migration from other parts of New Zealand to the South Island, because there are more opportunities there.”

Urban centres like Auckland and Wellington are showing little momentum, according to the SEEK report.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Rocket Lab has won a US$190 million (NZ$327m) contract from the United States Department of War, formerly the Department of Defence, for a series of hypersonic test flights using its HASTE launch vehicle.

It is the largest single contract in the NZ-founded company’s history and lifts its total order backlog to more than US$2 billion (NZ$3.44b).

The four‑year agreement covers 20 test flights of Rocket Lab’s Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron (HASTE) rocket, a modified version of its Electron launcher designed to carry suborbital payloads of up to 700 kilograms at speeds above Mach 5.

The launches will be carried out under the Multi‑Service Advanced Capability Hypersonic Test Bed (MACH‑TB) 2.0 programme – a partnership between the Department of War and the Naval Surface Warfare Centre Crane Division that aims to accelerate hypersonic flight testing and related technologies.

Rocket Lab has already conducted several HASTE missions since 2023 under the MACH‑TB programme.

Rocket Lab founder and chief executive Sir Peter Beck said the expanded partnership with the Department of War and MACH‑TB would help strengthen US national security by providing rapid and affordable hypersonic testing.

“Our advanced technology, responsive launch schedules, and mass production of our HASTE hypersonic rockets are enabling faster progress across a range of hypersonic experiments by our government and industry partners,” he said.

Sir Peter described the new deal as “another proud moment for the team that builds the strength and resiliency of the United States’ aerospace efforts”.

The contract takes Rocket Lab’s launch backlog to 70 missions, and the company has sold 28 launches in the first quarter of 2026 – almost as many as it sold during the whole of 2025.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand