Business

US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell, Photo: AFP / Mandel Ngan US central bank kicks off easing cycle Fed's policy rate lowered to 4.75 percent - 5.00 percent range Policymakers see another 50 basis points of cuts in 2024 One member of Fed board dissents; preferred smaller cut The US central bank has cut interest rates by a bigger-than-expected 0.5 percentage points in its first reduction in more than four years. The Federal Reserve's benchmark rate was cut to a range of 4.7to 5-5 percent, after being held at a 23-year high since July 2023. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell said the large cut was a "strong" move but was not in response to growing worries about the US economy and the labour market in particular. "We don't think we are behind," he said. "We think this is timely b...

Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon A niche part of the meat industry is seeing strong growth, with demand for blood and gland products on the up. The industry is very good at getting value out of every part of the animal and use most parts from the animal that are not meat such as tallow, bone meal, offal and blood - this is known as the fifth quarter. Red meat exports have been struggling over the last year due to softer demand from China. The fifth quarter hasn't been immune, in 2023/24 they dropped 13 per cent to $1.93 billion, despite this overall drop, fifth-quarter exports still accounted for 19 percent of total export revenue for the year. One area that has seen strong growth is blood and gland products which are used in vaccines, pharmaceuticals and medical devices. Meat Industry Associa...

Meta announced designated Instagram accounts would move automatically to "Teen Accounts" with more restrictive settings. Photo: OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP Teenagers might find a way around new restricted Instagram accounts, but it's important the company is trying, a social media consultant says. Meta announced on Wednesday designated Instagram accounts would move automatically to "Teen Accounts", which will be private accounts by default. Users of such accounts can only be messaged and tagged by accounts they follow or are already connected to, while sensitive content settings will be dialled to the most restrictive available. Users under 16 can change the default settings only with a parent's permission. Parents will also get a suite of settings to monitor who their children are engaging wi...

Photo: RNZ Fewer existing homeowners are moving to new properties - and part of that may be because they are stuck in a sales chain, waiting for places to sell, Corelogic says. It has released its latest housing chart pack, which shows that while sales volumes lifted 1.6 percent in August compared to the same time a year ago, they are still around 15 percent below the 10-year average. Its data showed that sales to relocating owner-occupiers were particularly weak, at 13.6 percent of the market. Property economist Kelvin Davidson said there could be some "catch-up" to happen there. "We haven't seen a lot of activity from them lately, but life has still happened in the past two or three years - households expanding, people splitting up - these things are always going on." He said falling m...

Photo: RNZ The number of job advertisements fell slightly last month, while the number of applications per job continues to rise. The latest Seek NZ Employment Report for August indicates the number of job ads fell about 1 percent, following 4 percent gain in July, while the number of applications per job ad rose 3 percent month-on-month. After rising 21 percent in July, hospitality and tourism ad volumes grew a further 6 percent in August. But other sectors recorded declines. "There was a notable drop in some of the larger industries, such as accounting, after a rise the month prior, and trades and services," Seek country manager Rob Clark said. "Even so, we are starting to see increasing demand in some pockets of the market, such as hospitality and tourism, healthcare and medical, and ...

Power prices jumped notably when wholesale prices increased through August, data compiled by a retailer showed. Photo: 123RF New data calls into question power company claims that households have not been affected by the recent surge in wholesale power prices, one independent retailer says. Data compiled by electricity retailer Electric Kiwi shows that the average "price leader" annual bill on Powerswitch - the best deal available to customers signing up or shifting provider - has increased from just under $2150 in June to about $2300. Prices jumped up notably when wholesale prices increased through August. Prices increased from about $300/MWh to more than $800/MWh. But the best retail offer has remained at higher levels even as wholesale prices dropped back to $50/MWh and less. Powersw...

Nate, Anna and their son Nathan Jameson at their Brite Leaf Citrus Nursery at Lake Panasoffkee in Florida before the citrus greening disease incursion. Photo: SUPPLIED American citrus growers are warning New Zealand growers that a plant disease infestation can be a "catastrophe" as it was for them in Florida - and disease prevention is key. Nate and Anne Jameson were recounting their experiences with citrus greening disease in Tai Rāwhiti at industry group Citrus New Zealand's conference on Wednesday. The Jamesons grew a range of citrus fruit and have run a large indoor citrus operation Brite Leaf Nursery for about 26 years at Lake Panasoffkee near Tampa in central Florida - selling to both commercial and backyard customers. But the pair's nursery has been hit by citrus greening disease...

From the mouth of a billionaire, it's a striking insult to hear. "There are a few what you would call 'rich pricks' who advertise it and are really interested in it," says Bruce Plested, the co-founder of Mainfreight. But most wealthy Kiwis prefer not to make a big deal out of their assets, he says. Rod Duke, another ultra wealthy businessman, agrees. And he goes further. In the United States, those who broadcast their wealth and how much they give away to charities are "generally looked upon as a model citizen." Not so in Aotearoa. Duke says he feels "squeamish" talking about the money he gives away. "I don't like talking about it at all." Duke and Plested are not unique in their reticence to talk about money. All of the wealthy people RNZ approached and spoke with for our series on wealt...

Peter-Lucas Jones attending the TIME100 Impact Dinner in San Francisco. Photo: Peter-Lucas Jones / supplied A Māori tech innovator and language revitalist wants to see te reo Māori thrive in-person and digitally. Peter-Lucas Jones, chief executive of Far North-based Te Hiku Media, earlier this month was named in Time magazine's top 100 AI leaders list of 2024 for Te Hiku's 'Papa Reo' data science project. The company has been developing artificial intelligence (AI) tools that transcribe te reo Māori, give pronunciation feedback, and turn text into speech at a 92 percent accuracy rate, making it the best in the world. Jones (Ngāi Takoto, Ngāti Kahu, Te Rārawa, Te Aupōuri) attended an event in California this week - The TIME100 Impact Dinner - celebrating those who made the influencer lis...

Photo: 123rf Consumer confidence has picked up in recent months as pessimism about the economic outlook begins to ease. The Westpac McDermott Miller Consumer Confidence survey for the September quarter rose 9 points to 90.8 points. However, any reading under 100 indicated pessimistic households outweighed those who were optimistic. Westpac senior economist Satish Ranchhod said the cost-of-living crisis continued to be a drag on retail spending, with an increases in the cost of household utilities, rates, insurance and a range of other financial pressures. While the recent tax cuts may have provided some relief, he said worries about job security continued. "But while many families have been doing it tough, they're now starting to feel a bit more optimistic about the outlook for their own...