The Retail Payment System (Ban on Merchant Surcharges) Amendment Bill was introduced last year with the intention of eliminating paywave and credit card surcharges by May 2026. The proposal aimed to remove the additional fees often added to card transactions, a move driven by rising public frustration over transparency and…

The latest figures from property data firm Cotality indicate that national property values slipped 0.1 per cent in January, reinforcing expectations that the market is likely to remain largely flat for at least the next six months. The median property value now sits at around 1 per cent lower than…

According to rental data for 2025, the national average weekly rent fell by 1.8 per cent compared with the year before. In Wellington, renters saw the biggest shift, with average rents dropping nearly 10 per cent, while Auckland rents declined by 2.5 per cent. For households in these centres, that…

New research from Datacom shows a clear shift in sentiment following a prolonged period of economic uncertainty, with many organisations now positioning technology as a key driver of future growth. Datacom’s Business Outlook 2026 survey found that 65 per cent of senior leaders expect economic conditions to improve over the…

What was widely promoted as a way to improve wellbeing and productivity is now being reassessed, with many employers returning to the traditional five-day schedule. Interest in shorter working weeks surged during and after the pandemic, when lockdowns forced businesses to rethink how and where work was done. Flexible arrangements…

The annual statement you receive from your provider includes an estimate of how much you might have saved by age 65 and what that could mean in weekly income. But these figures are based on conservative assumptions set by the government. The assumptions were made on many funds that have…

The latest data, covering the four months to October, indicates that fiscal pressures are building ahead of the upcoming Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update, due on 16 December. The operating deficit before gains and losses, excluding ACC, reached $4.9 billion for the period—around $700 million higher than projected in…

After three years of flat movement, national house prices are expected to finish 2025 only slightly higher. But 2026 may finally bring a change of pace, with analysts predicting a modest rise of about 4 per cent nationwide. For the average Kiwi, this means the market is unlikely to surge.…

The United States, one of the world’s largest consumers of imported beef, has imposed steep levies on meat from Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, and Uruguay. The move is driving costs higher for U.S. consumers and global markets. New Zealand’s beef industry has long relied on strong demand from the U.S.,…

The plan marks a significant policy shift and a return to one of the most politically charged tax issues in the country’s modern history. Under the proposal, profits from the sale of investment and commercial properties would be taxed at 28 percent, with the policy explicitly non-retrospective. Revenue from the…