Business

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Photo: RNZ People who are buying and selling properties for profit are being warned they could get a tax bill, even if they hold the house for longer than two years - and even if they have lived in it themselves. The bright-line test has now been reduced to two years, which means that investors who hold a property for at least that long are not automatically handed a tax bill for any gains they make on the property. But tax expert Robyn Walker, a partner at Deloitte, said people needed to understand that did not mean that everyone was automatically off the hook. Inland Revenue recently released a tool that would help people to understand whether their property was taxable under any of the land taxing rules. That would include people who bought a property intending to resell it, no matter...

Photo: 123RF The cost of sending our goods overseas has risen again due to ongoing tensions in the Red Sea. A report from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said global shipping rates have nearly doubled since late April, however they remain far below the peak reached during the Covid pandemic. "The main reason is the current disruption in the Red Sea, which has stretched global shipping capacity, with more shipping needed to service European and Asian routes. "Since December, there has been a 50 percent fall in shipping traffic navigating the Suez Canal, offset by a 70 percent jump in sailings around the less direct Cape of Good Hope," the report said. Houthi rebels began attacking ships in the Red Sea in October last year after the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Export NZ execut...

ANZ economists have updated their forecast for the year ahead. File picture. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Falling interest rates are unlikely to be enough to boost house prices through the rest of this year, the country's biggest bank says. ANZ's economists have updated their forecast for the year ahead. Instead of 1 percent house price growth over this calendar year, they expect a drop of 1 percent. They said while they had brought forward their expectations for an official cash rate cut from February to November - and there was a chance it would be earlier still - that was because the economy was weaker than expected, which would have an effect on house prices. "On the one hand there appears to be a slightly brighter sliver of light at the end of the interest rate tunnel but on the ot...

Only casino games would be allowed for the online casinos. Photo: 123rf The government plans to auction off licences for online casinos, but is proposing a range of regulations to minimise harm and boost tax revenue. Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden has outlined the system to be applied to online casinos, with a limited number of licences to be available for three-year terms with operators required to meet certain standards before offering services. New Zealand-based online casinos are illegal at present, but SkyCity Entertainment operates one based in Malta and has long called for a regulated industry. "This is not intended to increase the amount of gambling New Zealanders do, but to ensure operators meet requirements for consumer protection and harm minimisation, as well as...

Tourism and Hospitality Minister Matt Doocey speaking at the HNZ24 conference. Photo: RNZ / Adam Burns The tourism and hospitality minister is "challenging" businesses to think of the welfare of hospitality staff following reports of bullying from its workforce. The remarks came during a speech to open Hospitality New Zealand's two-day HNZ24 conference at Christchurch's Te Pae Convention Centre on Tuesday. Hundreds of operators from both the accommodation and hospitality sectors were in attendance. Tourism and Hospitality Minister Matt Doocey said the government wanted to help create the settings for the industry to thrive. However, Doocey - who also holds the first mental heath portfolio - took the opportunity to alert businesses of problems within the sector, including bullying in the...

Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa Trustee and PRIP Director Shelley Kopu leads the procession for the laying of the Mauri stone for the blessing of the site for the New Plymouth Airport Solar Farm. Photo: Supplied / Sandra Henderson A 15-hectare solar farm project designed to make New Plymouth Airport energy self-sufficient is ready for take off. The first phase beginning next week will see 14,400 solar panels installed, generating up to 14,700 megawatt hours - or enough to power 2000 homes for a year. Chief Executive David Scott said as well as making the airport self-sufficient in sustainable energy the solar farm would provide an added income stream via the sale of surplus power. "It will also take more than 1500 tonnes of CO2 out of our atmosphere each year," he said. "The solar farm on fa...

Smith and Caughey's on Queen St, Auckland. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Iconic Auckland retailer Smith and Caughey's is now considering a plan to downsize significantly, rather than closing the doors for good. The 144-year-old department store announced in May that it would permanently shut in 2025. But in a statement today, chairperson Tony Caughey said another option for the future of the business had been identified, and that was to scale back. He said it would mean closing the Broadway Newmarket store early in 2025 and making the Queen Street store smaller, with a focus on popular goods and online shopping. There would also be job cuts. The company currently employs about 240 staff. The business is consulting further with staff on the second option, with an outcome expected by the en...

Declines in affordable rented properties were consistent with "poor housing policies" says the author of a new report. File photo. Photo: 123RF Affordable rental properties are increasingly scarce, new data shows - and that's prompted calls for New Zealand to reconsider a capital gains tax. Research produced for the Child Poverty Action Group has looked at the affordability of a range of rental housing sizes, for households on middle incomes, low wages and benefits. Rent was considered affordable when households could pay it and still have enough money left to cover their basic livings costs. The report showed that for low-income working families, Northland's share of affordable rental housing dropped 14 percent between 2018 and 2023, Bay of Plenty's 11 percent, Gisborne 14 percent, Man...

The tax cuts coming this week are likely to be absorbed into household budgets, say economists. File photo. Photo: RNZ Tax cuts are coming - but they are unlikely to do much to ease the squeeze on struggling households. From 31 July, new tax thresholds apply, which will reduce most people's income tax bills. Someone who is single and earning $75,000 a year will save about $36.50 a fortnight in tax. A couple, each earning $100,000, with no children, would save about $80 a fortnight between them. Someone on the minimum wage, without a partner or children, working a 40-hour week will save $25 a fortnight. "They're small tax cuts," said Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr. "They're not life-changing. They'll definitely help some households a little bit. I just don't feel they're going to b...