New Zealand Finance Minister Grant Robertson speech notes on the NZ economy were released in emailed statement. His key
points are:Actively working on what comes after the wage subsidy scheme, assessing what further backing businesses and households
need alongside further support for health systemEmphasis at Level 3 lockdown is 'safe' economic activityHas established an “Economically Significant Business Group” inside Treasury to guide work with major businesses“We have brought in outside commercial expertise to support this, and have begun conversations with a range of network
critical businesses. There are a variety of options available should the government need to support businesses that are
essential to our recovery and our supply chains”“We showed with our NZ$900m package for Air New Zealand what we can do”Says thousands of New Zealanders are going to need to re-train, gain new skillsMay 14 budget will “include funding for the cost pressures that are necessary part of keeping our country ticking over”
but devote “much of our resources to kickstarting this recovery”“We must also make this the opportunity to reset our economy, to take account of the massive disruption to some sectors,
but also to address some of the long-standing challenges we face”“In doing so we also must chart a course to return to a sustainable fiscal position”“We must answer the big questions about our economy in these unprecedented times. What should we make and do here in New
Zealand to ensure our sustainability?”Says climate change will continue to be a major challengeNew Zealand has had long-run problem of low productivity, need to look at uptake of new technologyWill need to look at greater diversification of export markets“I believe it is of the utmost importance that the state continues to play an active part in the economic recovery,
providing leadership and direction as we move forward through the challenging times ahead”
In a separate statement,
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced government ministers and public service chief executives will take a 20% pay cut
for the next 6 months.
The NZD marginally lower in immediate response
.
Current indicative levels are:NZD-USD 0.6065 / 0.6090NZD-AUD 0.9460 / 0.9485NZD-EUR 0.5520 / 0.5545NZD-GBP 0.4805 / 0.4830NZD-JPY 64.95 / 65.20