Latest news with #OfficialCash
Scoop
28-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Discipline Pays Off With Interest Rate Relief
Press Release – ACT New Zealand By finding savings and prioritising spending carefully, like we've seen in Budget 2025, the Coalition Government has got inflation under control, making room for the Reserve Bank to ease pressure on borrowers, ACT Leader David Seymour says. Welcoming the Reserve Bank's decision to cut the Official Cash Rate by another 0.25% points, ACT Leader David Seymour says: 'New Zealanders' hard work and the Government's focus on fiscal discipline are paying off. 'Another rate cut is real relief for firms, farms, and families. Households with a $500,000 mortgage can expect to save around $100 a month, money that can go toward groceries, power bills, or building a better future. 'By finding savings and prioritising spending carefully, like we've seen in Budget 2025, the Coalition Government has got inflation under control, making room for the Reserve Bank to ease pressure on borrowers. 'Our best hope for continued relief is in ACT's push to cut bureaucracy, eliminate inefficient programs, and unwind red tape. We must stay the course, so Kiwis can keep more of what they earn, and invest in the things that matter to themselves and their loved ones.'
Scoop
28-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Discipline Pays Off With Interest Rate Relief
Press Release – ACT New Zealand By finding savings and prioritising spending carefully, like we've seen in Budget 2025, the Coalition Government has got inflation under control, making room for the Reserve Bank to ease pressure on borrowers, ACT Leader David Seymour says. Welcoming the Reserve Bank's decision to cut the Official Cash Rate by another 0.25% points, ACT Leader David Seymour says: 'New Zealanders' hard work and the Government's focus on fiscal discipline are paying off. 'Another rate cut is real relief for firms, farms, and families. Households with a $500,000 mortgage can expect to save around $100 a month, money that can go toward groceries, power bills, or building a better future. 'By finding savings and prioritising spending carefully, like we've seen in Budget 2025, the Coalition Government has got inflation under control, making room for the Reserve Bank to ease pressure on borrowers. 'Our best hope for continued relief is in ACT's push to cut bureaucracy, eliminate inefficient programs, and unwind red tape. We must stay the course, so Kiwis can keep more of what they earn, and invest in the things that matter to themselves and their loved ones.'
Scoop
21-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Budget Set For 2025/26, Rates Increase Less Than Proposed
Waikato regional councillors have set the budget for 2025/26, landing on a 5.7 per cent increase in rates revenue which is lower than proposed in the draft annual plan. Following almost five hours of deliberations on Tuesday (20 May), councillors agreed an increase in rates revenue from current ratepayers of $152.584 million or 5.7 per cent – less than the 5.9 per cent proposed for consultation, and significantly lower than the 8.6 per cent signalled 12 months ago through the 2024-2034 Long Term Plan. 'Staff and councillors have worked hard together to deliver a fiscally responsible budget,' said Waikato Regional Council Chair, Pamela Storey. Consultation was open from 1 to 30 April 2025, with feedback being sought on two key proposals: public transport rating and a river and catchment funding model for Wharekawa Coast. The council also sought views on changes to fees and charges and a new rate remission policy. Hearings were held in Paeroa and Hamilton on Monday (19 May), with 10 of the 143 individuals and groups who made a submission on the draft annual plan providing in person feedback. 'We appreciate the time taken by submitters to share their views and have balanced what we heard against the needs of our communities,' Chair Storey said. On the topic of regional rating for public transport, councillors agreed to stick with capital value for Hamilton ratepayers and introduce a flat per property rate in four categories across the rest of the Waikato. For the Wharekawa Coast, on the Firth of Thames, funding was confirmed through a mix of targeted and general rates, with a differential between rates charged to direct and indirect beneficiaries. Additional funding of $240,000 was committed for expert work on a business case and implementation plan for Te Huia – the passenger rail service between Waikato and Auckland. Councillors heard the work was critical to providing the NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi Board with the best information on which to decide the future of Te Huia beyond the end of the trial in 2026. Councillors were evenly split on whether to use a prior year surplus of $2.545 million to reduce rates for 2025/26, or to hold it to be available for one-off costs that arise due to rapid changes in the council's operating environment. Operating surpluses arise from differences between budgeted and actual revenue and expenditure. This may be due to operational savings or through changes in the operating environment, such as the rapid changes to the Official Cash Rate (OCR) seen over the last two financial years. Two submissions on this matter said they wanted the council to hold onto the surplus. Staff told councillors rates for 2025/26 would drop to 4 per cent if the surplus was used to reduce rates. At a property level, returning the surplus would see a reduction in the general rate of $1.09 per $100,000 capital value. For a $1 million property, that would equate to $10.90 off the annual rates bill. There would also be consequences in the following year, staff said, with the rates increase projected in the long term plan going from 4.2 per cent to 5.9 per cent. 'Giving back the surplus now would create a gap in our finances for future years and force bigger rates increases later on. It would also leave us less prepared for unexpected events, like a major cyclone or a biosecurity threat like we've seen with Caulerpa and freshwater clams,' Chair Storey said. On the casting vote of the chair, the motion to return the surplus to ratepayers was lost.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NZ central bank cuts rates 50bps, flags steeper easing cycle to revive frail economy
By Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand's central bank cut its benchmark rate by 50 basis points to 3.75% on Wednesday and flagged further reductions in borrowing costs amid moderating inflation as policymakers sought to revive a struggling economy. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor Adrian Orr said the board is forecasting a lower terminal rate than in its November projections, and expects two more 25-basis point rate cuts in April and May subject to economic conditions evolving as expected. The rate track pushed it broadly in line with market pricing and reinforced the RBNZ's dovish stance in contrast with a more cautious approach in Australia and the U.S., denting the New Zealand dollar and sparking a rally in 90-day bank bill futures. "If economic conditions continue to evolve as projected, the Committee has scope to lower the OCR further through 2025," the RBNZ said in its accompanying policy statement after the cut met market expectations in a Reuters poll. Orr, speaking at a press conference, said: "We are looking at lowering the official cash rate a little bit quicker than what we projected back in have our projection of the OCR being around 3% by year end." The RBNZ's new projection has rates at 3.45% by June, and at 3.10% in the fourth-quarter, down from the November estimate of 3.2%, helped by inflation moving to the middle of the bank's 1%-3% target. The central bank has now cut rates by 175 basis points since August in a much needed boost for an economy emerging from a deep recession. 'The main message from today's Monetary Policy Statement is the lowering (again) of the Official Cash Rate track. The RBNZ are signalling more cuts, sooner,' said Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr The RBNZ said it is well placed to respond to future inflationary shocks but added that global uncertainty, particularly led by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policies, pose risks to the economy. 'The RBNZ's aggressive 50-basis point cut to 3.75% shows its determination to revive the economy, despite inflation risks and global uncertainties like Donald Trump's re-election as U.S. President," said Junvum Kim, senior sales trader at Saxo Asia Pacific. Several of the large banks in New Zealand including Westpac, ASB Bank, Kiwibank and Bank of New Zealand cut mortgage rates following the cash rate announcement. Bill futures rallied as markets priced in a 93% chance of an easing in April and have rates near 3.0% by year-end, which is seen as the bottom of the cycle. The kiwi dollar slipped 0.3% to $0.5683 but rebounded to last fetch $0.5707. GLOBAL TARIFF, ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTY A global front-runner in withdrawing pandemic-era stimulus, the RBNZ lifted rates 525 basis points since October 2021 to curb inflation in the most aggressive tightening since the official cash rate was introduced in 1999. The punishing borrowing costs, however, took a heavy toll on demand and tipped the economy into recession in the third quarter of last year - the worst downturn outside of the pandemic since 1991. The weakened state of the economy has added urgency to policymakers efforts to stimulate demand. The government has already abandoned hopes for a return to budget surpluses, seeing deficits for the next five years. New Zealand's annual inflation has come off in recent months and is currently at 2.2%, but the central bank said a volatile period ahead will probably see it increase to 2.7% in the third quarter before moderating again. New Zealand is one of several countries to ease policy as inflation has moved lower, but its sharp rate reductions contrast with a more cautious approach by the U.S. Federal Reserve and its counterpart in Australia, which on Tuesday delivered the first cut in rates in more than four years. Trade and other broader economic policies under Trump's second term in power have also raised policy uncertainty around the world due to the renewed risk of inflation. "Lower interest rates will encourage spending, although elevated global economic uncertainty is expected to weigh on business investment decisions," the RBNZ said. "Geopolitics, including uncertainty about trade barriers, is likely to weaken global growth." Sign in to access your portfolio
