As part of the thinking for my presentation at the WPA/PMA/FTMA conference I did a bit of background checking, where the below thread went was illuminating and supports my other post “Milk powder, logs and China”. Following is...

tags: goran roos, exports, china, scandinavia, supply chain, adding value

It is interesting the way small mistakes propagate and underline the lack of understanding in our institutions. At the Pine Manufacturers Wood Processors conference mentioned elsewhere, an NZTE presentation trotted out the normal

tags: nzte, manufacturing, production, value chain, exports, stan shih

I have known Goran Roos for some time as an academic that understands the role of manufacturing in the community and how manufacturing fits in the world. He has not been seduced by the post-industrial thinking and has a wide...

tags: goran roos, adding value, manufacturing, exports, exchange rate, government

Recently I gave a presentation at the Pine Manufacturers / Wood Processors conference in Rotorua. As always when you do these things what to say and what not to say becomes the key consideration. Wood like raw material based supply chains is literally rooted in New Zealand, but like all resource based...

tags: milk, china, logs, trade, exports, imports, growth, added value, manufacturing

For the full version including graphs, click here.

The New Zealand economy has significant trade exposure; at 58% of GDP (trade is the sum of imports and exports) we are higher than Australia at 43%, the USA at 32% and many other countries. New Zealand has an even greater dependence on exports,...

tags: china, exports, elaborate, imports, manufacturing, fta, free trade agreement

This is a recent interview featured on CTV's Rob's Country. This month talking about politics, here and around the world, as well as debt.

tags: rob's country, exports, debt, labour

There has been a lot of recent talk of the New Zealand economy strengthening, backed up by apparent improvements in data, in particular the PMI and PSI. While it is clear that some general improvements have been felt, the extent and areas of improvement can be questioned.

Can we have confidence in measures based on sentiment? What should sentimental measures mean to us?
...

tags: sentiment, confidence, pmi, economy, federal reserve, sales

The implementation of loan to value “speed limits” by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) has stimulated a good deal of media comment. From first home buyers who now need to save a higher deposit, to Labour vowing to make an exemption for first home buyers and regional exemptions, as well as banks seeing direct limits on their ability to write more and more debt.

While this...

tags: lvr, loan to value ratio, rbnz, speed limits, interest, financial stability, monetary policy

If New Zealand’s exports are to increase as a share of gross domestic product what should be the policy targets? Should we relax and point to the successful and hope for more of the same, or would seeking to address the matters confronting those struggling around the threshold of failure have a greater macro impact?

The New Zealand Centre for Small and Medium Enterprise...

tags: exports, manufacturing, exchange rate, policy, rbnz, currency

I like a party as much as the next man but there is a dark side, there is the morning after and possibly a false conviction that all is well because, after all, we had a party. In the case of awards, the dark side extends to convincing onlookers that all is well. Worse, it gives permission for politicians to sit back; assured they have nothing extra to do. This extension is the big worry,...

tags: exports, awards, manufacturing, manufacturing inquiry, policy