Here are the key things you need to know before you leave work today.
TODAY'S MORTGAGE RATE CHANGES
Co-operative Bank reduced most of its fixed home loan rates today. Worth noting is their three year rate of 5.35% which is especially competitive.
TODAY'S DEPOSIT RATE CHANGES
There were rate cuts today from ASB, SBS, the Co-operative Bank, and ICBC today.
GE MONEY PROFIT DOWN
GE Capital's New Zealand consumer finance business has recorded a 9.9% fall in annual profit. Its 2014 year profit came in at $62.9 million, down $6.9 million from $69.8 million in 2013. The drop came as income fell just under 1% and expenses increased 2.4%.Total assets fell 6.9% to $2.75 billion, and total loans fell 1.8% to $1.76 billion. The business was part of General Electric's A$8.2 billion March sale to Varde Partners, KKR and Deutsche Bank of its Australasian consumer finance business.
WORSE AS EXPECTED
The current account deficit widened to -3.6% of GDP in the year to March 2015, as markets expected. The fall in dairy export prices over the past year drove the increase in the deficit, and will continue to do so over the course of this year. Cheaper oil imports and strong growth in tourist spending helped to soften the blow. But the track seems to be down with some analysts expecting it to peak at -6% of GDP at some time in the cycle.
FEWER MORTGAGES APPROVED
The winter season is starting to set in in the mortgage market. Home loan approvals are softening off noticeably last week.
CAP & BULK FUND
The Government has decided to cap the SuperGold cardholder use of public transport and bulk fund it with the operators. Cardholders won't notice any change. But they have also decided to put the Waiheke service up for competitive tender, given this is one of the few services that has competition and runs without subsidy.
BIG BUSINESS
The number of international students enrolled to study in New Zealand grew 13% in 2014, the highest level in a decade. There were 110,198 international students enrolled. International education is New Zealand’s fifth largest export industry, contributing $2.85 bln to the economy annually and supporting more than 30,000 jobs.
LATE COMERS
Australia is celebrating its FTA signing with China today - eight years after NZ signed its one.
WHOLESALE RATES SOFT
Swap rates fell -1 or -2 bps today. The 90 day bank bill rate was also lower another -1 bp today and is now at 3.28%.
NZ DOLLAR UNCHANGED
The NZ dollar was range bound yet again today. It is still at 69.7 USc, 90.3 AUc, 61.9 euro cents and the TWI-5 is still at 73.5. Check our real-time charts here.
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11 Comments
Cut immigration now! Oh yeah: "There were 110,198 international students enrolled. International education is New Zealand’s fifth largest export industry".
They all come in on fixed term visas and count as long-term migrants. Student visas contributed the majority of the rise from the historical average of 35,000 odd visa-based immigrants p.a. to around 55,000. In fact, arrivals of permanent residents has declined over the last ten years.
As long as they don't get to drag extended families or open jobs to folks back home, there is no difference selling education to foreign visitors than tourism or selling them finished product in their home country. International students are buying a NZ product and taking it home with them...this is what we _want_. And we should clearly _increase_ our productivity and sales in this area.
What we shouldn't do is throw-in free citizenship or free land (like with the Forestry deals) or allow them to purchase housing/property any more than we would to a dairy-consumer or tourist.
...it's not the education we are exporting.....its the ability stay on permanently that's being exported. Nothing particularly flash about many of the rubbish courses being pumped out at our techs....and let's not get started on the lax standards and cheating that runs rampant that allows the cash cow to run on.....
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/preview/271691/crackdown-on-english-langu…
and the industry built around sponsor job (which the immigrant pays the employer) and the immigration industry
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10591650
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10832529
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10646755
It is great that these students come here to learn how do you think ppl pay for their mortgages you can get around $280/wk+ tax free for hosting a student. If you have room for five great. Anymore than that and you run into regulation problems.
No they cannot bring their extended families, most of them only come for two weeks. But some are for up to three years
Great little income earner
Farmers are struggling, small businesses struggling. many people under the "cost of living"...
this is what our government does: http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/69455082/Ministry-spends-140-0…
If they can afford that, they can afford to pay full market price for land they want to steal.
Meanwhile the BDI seems to be running at a level lower this year than last,
http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/BDIY:IND
In fact its never been this low,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltic_Dry_Index#/media/File:BDI.png
The blip in the middle is an interesting anomaly? however.
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