September 2023
How did it all go wrong for New Zealand Labour?
Less than three years after Jacinda Ardern won a stunning election victory, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins is heading for defeat at the polls on October 14.
May 2023
New Zealand budget to test Hipkin’s pitch to middle class
The new PM sits more to the right of Jacinda Ardern on economics, and describes himself as a Keynesian who believes in balanced budgets over the cycle.
February 2023
Tax more or spend less after cyclone, RBNZ governor advises
The measures could be used to bring down inflation, New Zealand’s central bank governor said, comments likely to inflame a political debate.
New Zealand’s new DIY PM faces tough economic task
Chris Hipkins has been quick to pivot to “bread and butter issues”, but he faces a daunting job to revive New Zealand’s economy.
January 2023
Ardern’s exit leaves her party in dangerous limbo
New Zealand’s Labour Party is now in disarray ahead of the October general election, with the opposition National Party given a major boost.
December 2022
The gloss comes off Jacinda Ardern’s government
As her popularity sinks to a record low, New Zealand’s prime minister needs to tackle the country’s growing list of challenges - fast.
November 2022
Grumpy RBNZ governor deals a blow to Jacinda Ardern’s chances
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand made life tougher for Jacinda Ardern, heading into an election year, by raising interest rates by the most in the bank’s history.
May 2022
Big-spending budget for inflation-hit NZ
Finance Minister Grant Robertson has stuck to long-term commitments to climate and health while looking for short-term fixes for the immediate pain of rising interest rates.
August 2021
New Zealand braces for hard medicine in a froth and bubble economy
Unemployment is down, wages are up and economic growth is at 2.3 per cent. So why is not everyone happy?
May 2021
Ardern’s budget shows more fiscal restraint than Frydenberg’s
Finance Minister Grant Robertson has not spent all of the upside of a better than expected bounce, choosing to speed up the nation’s fiscal recovery from pandemic-induced debt.
NZ goes back to the ’70s with new industrial relations club
Overhauled labour laws aim to provide industry-wide coverage for poorly paid workers, but there is scope for any number of sectors to be captured in future.
Ardern supercharges union power in IR overhaul
New Zealand’s Labour government has announced a radical overhaul of labour laws that places centralised wage bargaining back at the heart of industrial relations law.
November 2020
Property prices are up 20pc in New Zealand
Kiwis have seen an almost 20 per cent rise in median house prices over the past year, caused by fewer houses on the market, more demand for them and cheaper mortgages.
October 2020
Forget left and right, Jacinda Ardern's in the middle
After a sweeping victory, the New Zealand leader and her finance team are positioning Labour as the party of sensible economic management.
Why winning the election was the easy part for Ardern
Jacinda Ardern's first challenge will be how to keep a lid on unemployment and rebuild the COVID-19-shattered economy without blowing out the national debt.
Ardern eyes victory in election - but NZ's future isn't clear
The New Zealand election is all over bar the shouting. The question is, however, what Jacinda Ardern does with her thumping victory.
August 2020
NZ's second lockdown may be one too many
If life continues to be disrupted in New Zealand, the public appetite for keeping the country COVID-19-free at any cost will likely wane.
March 2020
'Go hard go early' might work for NZ
All eyes are on the Ardern government's handling of the coronavirus crisis after its lockdown has resulted in what is essentially a police state.
February 2020
Popularity won't solve Ardern's Winston problem
With a donations scandal engulfing Winston Peters, her unlikely Coalition partner, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is facing one of the biggest challenges of her premiership.
December 2019
Tragedy forces New Zealand to reassess risk
Rocked by earthquakes and volcano eruptions, New Zealand is a nation that has had to look more closely at risk – and how it is assessed – than most other countries have had to.