New Zealand ANZ Business Confidence rose from -56.7 to -47.8 in August. Own Activity Outlook rose from -8.7 to -4.0. Export intentions rose from -2.7 to 3.9. Investment intentions rose from -2.6 to -2.0. Employment intentions rose from 1.1 to 3.4. Pricing intentions dropped from 74.0 to 70.1. Cost expectations dropped from 91.3 to 90.9. Inflation expectations dropped slightly from 6.23 to 6.13.
ANZ said: “It would make sense that with inflation and wage inflation running so high, the neutral Official Cash Rate is creeping higher, meaning the sting of a given interest rate wears off. Risks are tilted towards the RBNZ having to continue on with OCR hikes next year to cool the economy sufficiently to feel comfortable they’re getting on top of the inflation problem.”
