Category: Business

Source: Radio New Zealand

The government’s finances are in better than expected shape as spending has fallen while the tax take is steady.

Treasury figures, which exclude ACC finances, show a deficit of $6 billion for the seven months ended January, about $1.9b below the December half year forecast.

The deficit including ACC costs was $6.5b, also well below forecast.

The tax take was fractionally lower as dips in company, investment and tobacco charges, were offset by higher income tax receipts.

Expenses were more than a billion dollars lower, as IRD clawed back unpaid tax, spending on core government services, health and environment programmes were lower.

Net debt was slightly lower than expected at 41.9 percent of the value of the economy.

… More to come

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

• Australian controlled mining company Tāiko Critical Minerals to list on NZ stock exchange (NZX)
• Company planning heavy minerals mining venture near Greymouth, production in 2028
• NZX listing aimed at widening investor base
• Selected wholesale NZ investors offered shares
• Taiko plans to raise more capital later in year

An Australian controlled company, Tāiko Critical Minerals, debuts on the NZX today, offering local investors a chance to participate in the company’s West Coast mining venture.

The company plans to mine rare earth heavy metals from farmland at Barrytown near Greymouth, using what it calls a rehabilitative mining process.

Chief executive Robert Brand said the NZX listing was aiming to strengthen its long term finances, and introduce local investors.

“Expanding our investor base and having greater access to growth capital are critical enablers of our plans to extract from a ‘world class’ deposit in an emerging high-value sector for the New Zealand economy, and to deliver long-term value for our shareholders.”

Taiko, originally named Tiga Resources, is targeting ilmenite, garnet, zircon, rutile and rare earth element concentrates, which it says are present in high quantities at the site.

The minerals will be extracted and processed at nearby Rapahoe, before export.

Following capital raising, construction and commissioning of the extraction and separation facilities will take place in 2027 ahead of commercial production in 2028.

Brand said the venture would provide jobs and revenue for the local community.

“In the year ahead we’ll be employing the first group of 135 workers, with a further 189 support roles expected in future. “

“There are also quite a few houses to build and plant to be constructed ahead of an expected $11.8 million in local wages and $112.5m in annual export earnings, so there is a lot to look forward to as this project starts to get up and running.”

Brand said Taiko would be looking to raise new capital later in the year, and had already sold shares to New Zealand wholesale investors.

The majority of the company’s shares are owned by Australian investors. The shares have been valued at 11 NZ cents each.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Organisations helping house rough sleepers are relying on private landlords to open their doors, amid a shortage of social homes.

With the government limiting further social housing builds, Housing First providers are eyeing up market rentals – but the perfect properties, and owners, are hard to find.

However, one landlord said he “could not get better” than leasing through Housing First.

The government-backed programme helps chronically homeless people into housing, giving them long-term support to sustain their tenancy.

The idea is in the name – house people first, then deal with any mental health, addiction or other problems they may have.

Research shows it’s effective, with participants spending less time in hospital and mental health units, having fewer criminal charges, and higher incomes.

Wellington’s Downtown Community Ministry (DCM) rental procurement manager Shaun Monaghan said his organisation had about 200 people in its Housing First programme, and about 34 of them are still without a home – sleeping rough.

The organisation was granted 30 of the extra 300 government-funded places dished out last year.

But Monaghan said the actual homes is what they were short of, and DCM found itself leaning heavily on private landlords.

“It’s a little bit out of kilter. Our preference would be to have a steady stream of housing that is backed by central government to allow their programme to work efficiently, rather than relying on a private market which may not have suitable housing and which may not have the right landlord that wants to step into that space.”

Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka said the government was backing more housing supply by partnering with Kāinga Ora, community housing providers and Māori housing providers across the country.

Elizabeth Lester is the chief executive of Dwell Housing Trust – a community housing organisation that manages the tenancies on behalf of the property owner and DCM.

She gave RNZ her pitch for property owners with empty rentals.

“It’s a tough property market out there right now and we can offer a three-year lease, fixed market rentals, no property management fees, and a professional property management company that’s been around for 45 years, so they don’t have to worry about a thing,” she said.

“We will take care of it.”

Housing First appealed to different kinds of landlord, Lester said.

“At first we sort of thought it would be people who are socially minded, and we do have those kind of landlords, but we also have landlords who are just … in a pickle right now and need that long term security, and that’s okay.”

Lester said the government’s support of Housing First in Wellington would make a huge difference, but its plans to move on rough sleepers are a backwards step.

“What I just ask for is patience, because the move on policy really feels counterproductive to the good work we’re doing here,” she said.

“We are so focused on these long-term solutions, we’re focused on what works, and we know that Housing First works, so let’s do more of it.”

Potaka said move-on orders are separate from Housing First and serve a different purpose.

‘Cannot get better’ than leasing through Housing First – property owner

Tejinder Singh’s nine Papatoetoe two-bedroom rentals all house people who were formerly sleeping rough.

For him, it was both a social good and a smart investment.

“What you really are after normally is good, solid tenants, long-term tenants, and it cannot get better than these people,” he said.

“They give you a long-term lease, whether you want three years or five years, and the rent is paid on time … you’re not having to find tenants … they don’t give you notice and leave.”

The property investor and real estate agent rents the homes through Housing First provider, LinkPeople.

He acknowledged people may worry about who they were opening up their homes to.

“Even in [the] normal private market, you can find tenants who are not good, that’s just how it is.”

Singh had “no issues”, nor any complaints from the neighbours.

He was so impressed he planned to build more homes to be leased through Housing First.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Trade Me is removing success fees for casual sellers, in a move that one marketing expert says is probably a response to the growing power of Facebook Marketplace.

Sellers have usually been paying 7.9 percent of the final sales price of items sold via Trade Me.

But a new fee structure will remove them from next week and site spokesperson Lisa Stewart said casual sellers would be better off.

It is making other changes at the same time: Bank transfers will not be possible and Ping will be offered on every listing alongside cash and Afterpay, with a 2.19 percent transaction fee for the seller. This provides buyer protection up to $5000 if trades go wrong.

Buyers will also pay a new service fee based on the purchase price, if items are more than $20. This will be 99c for goods sold for $20.01 to $100, $1.99 for sales between $100.01 and $250 and $4.99 for items over $4.99. Stewart said 44 percent of trades were under $20.

Stewart said it was a response to customer feedback and what was happening in the market.

“We are hearing two things really clearly. The first is customers really value the safety and protection we provide, but fees are becoming more of a barrier to selling. And so with these changes, we’re looking to respond to both of those things.

‘While most fraudulent activities on Trade Me are resolved quickly, 90 percent of the scams that we couldn’t help our members with last year involved bank transfers. These payments happen outside our system, making it much more difficult for us to step in and help when things go wrong. Once a buyer sends money this way, those funds are often gone for good, and we have zero visibility over the transaction. That’s not a risk we want for our community.

“We’re committed to making every trade safer, which is why we’re moving away from bank transfers in favour of our secure payment systems.”

Massey University marketing expert Bodo Lang said it was likely to be in response from growth in the use of Facebook Marketplace, which offers no protection for buyers but charges no fees.

“Facebook Marketplace has certainly been snapping at their heels … I think it could also be seen as a move to make pricing more transparent because it’s not always easy for someone who’s selling something to understand exactly what the fee will be.”

He said a younger generation might feel more comfortable buying and selling on social media and would be less inclined to think of Trade Me.

“[With Facebook] it’s easier to actually get hold of people and close the deal whereas for Trade Me you have to wait until the auction is over and there’s a bit more of a rigid process to follow whereas Facebook Marketplace is very organic and sort of consumer-to-consumer that just happens to be facilitated by a platform … convenience is such a big driver of behaviour.”

Stewart said Facebook Marketplace was one of Trade Me’s biggest competitors.

“Like all businesses, we do keep an eye on what they’re up to. But ultimately, this is about listening to what our customers want and creating the best experience that we possibly can.”

She said Trade Me had been around 27 years and this would help set it up for the next 27.

The buyer fee would go towards keeping the platform operating and allow it to keep offering local support.

Stewart said she was selling a pram and hoping to get $100. At the moment she would pay about $8 in success fees. Under the new rules she would pay no success fee but about $2 in Ping fees. The buyer would pay a 99c service fee.

“In total, our customers will be paying about $5 less in fees for a transaction of about $100.”

There is no change for vehicle sales, property or professional sellers.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Upturns have to start somewhere, and February could have been the beginning for the housing market, Cotality says.

It has released its latest data which shows property values lifted 0.2 percent in February, the strongest increase since October last year.

The national median value was $806,697, still 1.2 percent down on a year ago and 17.3 percent lower than the 2022 peak.

Hamilton and Dunedin experienced a lift of 0.9 percent in the month while Auckland was up only 0.1 percent. Wellington was up 0.4 percent and Christchurch 0.6 percent.

Over a year, Wellington was down 1.4 percent, Auckland down 3.2 percent and Christchurch up 2.8 percent.

Chief property economist Kelvin Davidson said the stronger results could be a sign of things to come but it was still early days.

With sales activity trending upwards for some time now, mortgage rates down, and the economy showing signs of a pick-up, a re-emergence of modest gains in property values this year would not be a surprise, he said.

“The labour market probably holds the key, and most forecasts suggest that employment has already troughed, with the unemployment rate set to fall from now on.

“That being said, a modest lift in national property values in a single month in February is nothing to get carried away about.”

He said there would need to be increases for two or three more months before it could be a trend.

“Upturns do start somewhere. And I guess with those underlying fundamentals, we’re sort of watching for that.

“It was the strongest rise we’ve seen for three or four months and I think probably the more notable thing is just the broad-based nature of it. We saw increases across all the main centres which hasn’t happened for quite some time.”

He said provincial areas were still strong thanks to healthy farming activity.

“That’s going to be providing some cash into those markets and some liquidity into those markets.”

Election impact

Davidson said the looming election could also have an effect.

“We know there’s going to be chat around capital gains tax. You could imagine discussion around interest deductibility. I think the election is probably looming fairly large for investors. We are seeing investors active in the market now but you wouldn’t necessarily be surprised if there’s a wee bit of a hiatus there as we get closer to the election as they weigh up what parties are saying and what it might mean in terms of tax bills.”

Conflict in the Middle East was not yet a factor.

“In the near term it would be slightly inflationary. Maybe in the medium term depending on how long it lasts it could be disinflationary in the sense that you get a slowing economy and that weighs on inflation. I think it depends on the time period you’re looking at, how long will this last?

“I don’t think the Reserve Bank will necessarily be rushing to do anything, just sort of sitting back and waiting to see how that all plays out.

“They have been pretty consistent in saying they think there’s spare capacity out there so that should eventually bring inflation back down potentially even with some sort of shock coming through from oil prices or shopping costs.”

He said more borrowers were choosing to fix for longer. About 30 percent of existing home loans were fixed and not due to reprice for at least a year, the highest share since February 2024.

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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 batch of Steinlager beer is being recalled for having incorrect alcohol-free labels.

Lion has announced a recall of over 2500 cases of Steinlager Ultra Low Carb 24-packs, saying that clear bottles with alcohol-free labels are not alcohol free.

In a statement, the company said that Steinlager Alcohol Free is only sold in green bottles, not clear bottles.

It said a customer complained about the mistake, and the company then found out there was an error in its production run, meaning beer containing 4.2 percent of alcohol was incorrectly labelled.

The 24-packs may contain a mix of alcoholic, and non-alcoholic beers. In total, 2538 cases of the 24-packs are potentially affected.

The cases affected have a best-before date of 21 October 2026.

Lion apologised for the error and said it would be conducting a full investigation, ensuring the error did not happen again.

“We are working with customers to recall the product in any retail stores including supermarkets and liquor stores as well as wholesalers and hospitality venues.”

It said anyone who should not drink alcohol should not drink the product.

“Anyone who may have consumed this product and is concerned about their health, should consult their health care professional.

“Through a nationwide recall procedure we are working with the food safety authorities and retailers to remove impacted product from the market as a priority.”

New Zealand Food Safety chief executive Vincent Arbuckle said the recall would be worrying for many.

“I am very mindful that this recall will be concerning for a range of consumers who have medical, cultural, or lifestyle reasons why they select non-alcoholic beverages.

“As is our usual practice, NZFS will work with Lion NZ to understand how this happened and prevent it recurring,” Arbuckle said.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Some people are resorting to withdrawing money from their KiwiSaver accounts to clear Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) debt, financial mentors say, in a new report that indicates recent reforms are not helping consumers.

The report by Consumer NZ and financial mentor network Fincap, with assistance from Victoria University, was released on Wednesday.

BNPL allows people to buy goods or services and pay them off, interest-free, over a set number of weeks. The main providers in New Zealand are Afterpay, Klarna, Zip and Payright.

When payments are missed, late fees are charged.

Before September 2024, BNPL was not subject to consumer credit lending requirements under the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act, because they were not covered by the definition due to not charging interest.

Now, some of the provisions of that act apply, including a requirement that borrowers are given key information about the contracts, and lenders comply with some responsible lending obligations.

But the new research found that all BNPL providers had taken up the option to use credit checks and reporting instead of full affordability assessments on borrowers.

This seemed not to be stopping people from getting into problem debt, it said.

“The fact that BNPL providers must obtain a credit report on new customers and when increasing an existing customer’s spend limit is positive to a degree, in that it means the BNPL provider will have a more informed picture of the customer’s financial position. However, BNPL providers are not legally required to use the information obtained through the credit report to assess whether the customer can afford the loan.”

The report said New Zealand should require affordability assessments for BNPL lending, too.

Report author Victoria Stace noted that the UK and Australia were moving to require more comprehensive affordability assessments. She said that seemed to indicate that affordability assessments would be feasible, and that the current system was not adequate.

BNPL providers remain exempt from a requirement that they not charge unreasonable fees and the report said some still had policies letting them charge “disproportionately high” late payment fees.

The report said BNPL should also have limits on fees.

“The problem with high late payment fees, or multiple late payment fees across purchases, is that they can lead to financial overcommitment/overindebtedness, resulting in consumers borrowing more money to repay BNPL debts or forgoing other essential goods and services.”

The report said “quasi BNPL” such as where a business might offer a payment system for its own goods or services, should be regulated in the same way as traditional BNPL.

“From the consumer’s perspective, the service is the same: they receive a good or service early, must pay instalments and can be charged late fees if they default.”

Stace said the Fincap data showed the number of people presenting with BNPL debt had not gone down since the reforms.

“BNPL is fairly easy to get and it seems to have replaced what we used to have… we used to have payday loans where if people were really desperate for money they could go out and it would be reasonably straightforward to get a high-cost loan from a payday lender.

“We don’t have that facility so much anymore because of the regulation around high-cost lending. It seems that this is the go-to form of credit for people who are struggling to pay for things and it seems relatively easy to get.

“It obviously works well for those who can afford it and pay off their instalments in the requisite timeframe and don’t incur penalties but it doesn’t work well if people who can’t really afford it but can still get access to a BNPL facility.”

Jake Lilley, senior policy adviser at Fincap, said people were still presenting to mentors with BNPL debt and in budget deficit.

The report noted that mentors said BNPL providers were willing to work with people in hardship to match repayments to what they could afford but people were often reluctant to cancel their accounts.

“They’re really worried about how they’ll survive without BNPL,” he said.

“Almost viewing it like an emergency fund or an overdraft … it’s quite a harsh change to get off the treadmill of constantly borrowing for essentials. And so people weren’t opting to take up those hardship arrangements. It’s a really wicked problem… people are taking out KiwiSaver hardship to keep those accounts alive.”

He said people thought of the accounts as something they really needed. “We need to look at how people are responding to it and get smart in terms of protections to make sure we don’t get trapped.”

Mentors said BNPL providers were quick to send loans to debt collection.

The report said they also noted BNPL was sometimes accessed after other loan repayments had become unaffordable because affordability requirements that other lenders were subject to had ruled out other credit options.

Lilley said it was now up to Parliament to give the Financial Markets Authority new responsibilities and powers to be able to action the report’s recommendations.

“While that progresses we also need moves to licence debt collectors at the FMA so we are in a position to monitor the fairness of how unaffordable BNPL loans are collected over the coming years.”

Afterpay has been approached for comment.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Two courier companies found to be involved in cartel behaviour have been ordered to pay more than $1.2 million combined.

Courier service Aramex has been penalised $700,000, while a second company, GoSweetSpot, has been penalised $525,000 in two separate cases of cartel conduct investigated by the Commerce Commission.

The commission said it is also issuing warnings to another nine courier services for behaviour it believes could be considered cartel conduct under the law.

“The freight and courier sector has been an area of ongoing concern and focus for us, with the commission taking five court cases in the last 15 years,” Commerce Commission chair Dr John Small said.

“We expect these penalties and warnings to bring about a change of behaviour in the courier sector.”

Both Aramex and GoSweetSpot earlier admitted to entering into contracts that allocated customers between themselves and a competitor. Aramex also admitted to including fixed prices in its contract. The breaches were separate and the contract agreements were not with one another.

Dr Small said it was vital the courier sector remains highly competitive and free of behind-closed-doors agreements.

“This outcome sends a strong message that it will not be tolerated,” he said.

“Companies engaging in cartel conduct should expect to be on the receiving end of enforcement action.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

A former financial adviser has been convicted and fined $15,000 for breaching a banning order by the financial markets regulator, but investors remain out of pocket.

David McEwen was convicted of four charges of breaching a 2023 Financial Markets Authority stop order at the Auckland District Court.

He left the country in 2023, criminal charges were filed in March 2025, and was sentenced in absentia on Wednesday.

The convictions came after McEwen pleaded guilty in November 2025.

He has also been banned from being a director or promoter, or being involved in the management of a New Zealand company and providing financial advice services for seven years.

His application for a discharge without conviction was dismissed.

The FMA said he breached the stop order in three ways, including offering and issuing financial products relating to an entity McEwen incorporated in Singapore.

It said investors made $173,000 in payments in response to the offers.

What happened to that money remains unclear, as McEwen remains out of the country and out of the FMA’s jurisdiction, with investors losing thousands of dollars.

He also issued units in an investment vehicle called International Opportunities Partnership, which was created after the stop order was made.

The FMA said the units replaced – without investor consent – financial products that investors held relating to other entities associated with McEwen.

In return, he asked investors for an administration fee. The FMA said investors paid $17,000 to McEwen for the fee.

McEwen also offered and issued financial products, and restricted communications, related to a company called Agtech 3, which fell under the stop order.

“We were concerned about the substance of the representations he was making about the offer of the financial products to clients,” FMA head of enforcement Margot Gatland said.

“We focus our enforcement actions on preventing and addressing significant harm to consumers, markets and our financial system,” Gatland said.

“Mr McEwen breached our Stop Order in various ways almost immediately after it was made, after he had left New Zealand.”

McEwen was a business journalist prior to his investment career, and worked for well-known publications, including the Financial Times, National Business Review and Reuters.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Open work visa holders are set to see changes to their visa conditions next month.

An open work visa generally allows people to work for almost any employer, across most sectors and locations, without needing a job offer.

From 20 April, Immigration New Zealand said open work visas would include two new types of employment conditions.

Under the first set of conditions, some open work visa holders, including those on Post Study Work Visas and a range of partner visas, will be able to work for an employer or be self-employed, including as a sole trader or by owning and operating a business.

Under the second set of conditions, open work visa holders on Victims of Domestic Violence Work Visas, Migrant Exploitation Protection Work Visas, Asylum Seeker Work Visas and all working holiday visas will still be required to work for an employer, either under an employment agreement or a contract for services.

The change makes clear that open work visa holders will not be allowed to employ other people, either directly or indirectly through a business they own or operate, including where the business is the named employer.

Peter Elms, director of visas at Immigration New Zealand, said the changes were prompted by sector feedback and were intended to remove uncertainty created by existing work visa settings for both visa holders and immigration advisers.

He said updating and standardising the conditions would provide clearer guidance and reduce the risk of unintentional breaches of the Immigration Act.

“Overall, the changes are intended to help migrants better understand their visa conditions and work rights while they are in New Zealand,” Elms said.

The upcoming changes have been welcomed by immigration lawyers and advisers.

David Cooper, chief executive of New Zealand Immigration Partners, said the update to immigration instructions and policy would remove confusion and close a grey area that had existed previously.

“Particularly for people who held open work visas, whether or not they were allowed to work for themselves was never clear in the immigration instructions,” Cooper said.

“This will now allow them to do it and make it very clear that it’s legal for them to be able to do that.”

Cooper said that while self-employment would not apply to every type of open work visa, it would give eligible visa holders another option beyond finding a job.

“If they do struggle to find a job, they can at least consider setting up their own small business and trying that,” he added.

Sonny Lam, an immigration lawyer at Queen City Law, said clearer guidance could spur a modest lift in the recruitment of non-resident workers.

“The rules become muddled due to frequent changes and create a perception in busy employers’ minds that they can only hire someone on the Accredited Employer Work Visa,” he said.

“With this latest change, it will likely remind employers that they can hire such workers on open work visas again, leading to a slight increase,” he said.

Lam said the restriction preventing open work visa holders from employing others appeared to envisage gig-economy work, such as ride-share driving or delivery services.

This sort of work was a popular way for migrants to generate income and could provide a small boost to the wider economy, he said.

Arunima Dhingra, a senior licensed immigration adviser and chief executive of Aims Global, said clearer rules could reduce risk and improve compliance.

“In recent years there has been increasing confusion around what ‘open’ actually means,” she said.

“Many migrants and employers assume ‘open’ means unrestricted in all respects. At the same time, we have seen growth in contracting, project work and small-scale sole-trading arrangements.

“Those grey areas can create compliance risks if visa holders inadvertently step outside what is permitted.”

Dhingra said that once the rules were explicit, employers could have greater confidence in engaging open work visa holders under appropriate arrangements.

For visa holders, she said, it reduced the risk of unintentionally breaching visa conditions.

Dafydd Parry, a licensed immigration adviser at Greenstone Immigration, said the restriction preventing open work visa holders from employing others could affect some current open work visa holders who are already running businesses that employ staff.

He said transitional arrangements and support would be available for those people until their current visa expires, after which the new rules would apply.

He said the clarification could also help ensure that employment created by temporary visa holders was sustainable and compliant, and that vulnerable workers were protected.

“Allowing temporary visa holders to employ staff could be deemed to create risks,” he said.

“If the visa holder must leave New Zealand, their employees may suddenly lose their jobs,” he said.

“Some cases may raise concerns about exploitation or non-genuine job arrangements.”

Elms said not all migrants were familiar with New Zealand’s employment laws or business obligations, and that allowing self-employment and business ownership while restricting the ability to hire staff helped support safe and compliant work practices.

He said it also reduced the risk of employers unintentionally breaching employment or immigration requirements.

Elms added that the rules also reflected a distinction between activities that signal temporary intent and those that suggest a more permanent footing.

“Running a business that employs others generally indicates a more ongoing and established presence in New Zealand, which is not the intent of a temporary open work visa,” he said.

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