BCC has filed for bankruptcy and the administrators of the electronics chain informed its employees on Thursday morning, NL Times reported. The court granted BCC a deferment of payment last week. The electronics chain has 58 stores, an online shop, and around 1,300 employees. If the court declares BCC bankrupt, the bankruptcy administrators can start working on a possible restart, potentially saving some of the jobs. The electronics chain has been struggling with financial problems.
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New Zealand’s economy probably emerged from a shallow recession in the second quarter as a surge in immigration fueled growth, Bloomberg News reported. Gross domestic product increased 0.4% in the three months through June, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists. From a year earlier, the economy expanded 1.2%, the survey shows. Statistics New Zealand publishes the report at 10:45 a.m. Thursday in Wellington.
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New Zealand’s government is tightening its belt as a domestic recession and concerns about China’s faltering economy erode tax revenue and strain its budget, Bloomberg News reported. The government has identified almost NZ$4 billion ($2.4 billion) of potential savings over the next four years, Finance Minister Grant Robertson said Monday in Wellington. He has instructed the public service to cut spending on consultants and contractors and said he will also reduce future budget allowances. “We have seen further deterioration in the global economy, particularly in China,” Robertson said.
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New Zealand's Bed Bath & Beyond is fighting on two fronts to protect its brand. Now, the High Court has knocked it back, Newsroom reported. This country’s most familiar green-and-white High St.
New Zealand inflation probably slowed markedly in the second quarter as the central bank’s aggressive interest-rate increases began to take their toll, Bloomberg reported. Consumer prices rose 5.9% from a year earlier, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey of 14 economists. That would be a big drop from 6.7% in the first quarter and the weakest reading since 2021. It would also undershoot the Reserve Bank’s forecast of 6.1%. Statistics New Zealand will publish the data Wednesday in Wellington.
The European Union signed a free trade agreement with New Zealand on Monday that the two sides expect will increase bilateral trade by up to 30% within a decade, the Associated Press reported. New Zealand will gain up to 1.8 billion New Zealand dollars ($1.1 billion; €1 billion) in exports to the 27-country bloc every year, a government statement said. The European Union signed a free trade agreement with New Zealand on Monday that the two sides expect will increase bilateral trade by up to 30% within a decade.
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New Zealand slipped into recession as the economy shrank in the first quarter, data showed on Thursday, reducing the risk the central bank would need to hike interest rates further but creating a new headwind for the government's re-election hopes, Reuters reported. Gross domestic product (GDP) matched analysts' expectations of a 0.1% contraction in the March quarter but was well below the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's (RBNZ) forecast of 0.3% growth. Furthermore, fourth-quarter GDP was revised to a contraction of 0.7% from a decline of 0.6%.
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New Zealand on Thursday announced a worse-than-forecast budget deficit as a slowing economy and a lower tax take hit its coffers, leaving the Labour government walking a tight rope as its spending plan is expected to fan inflationary pressures, Reuters reported. In his last budget ahead of what is set to be a close-run election in October, finance minister Grant Robertson announced billions towards rebuilding infrastructure following severe weather events at the start of the year and towards helping those struggling with increased living costs.
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New Zealand’s international tourist sector disappeared overnight when the country became one of the first to seal its borders at the beginning of the COVID outbreak in early 2020. But since borders fully reopened in August, foreign tourists have been making their way back and are responsible for one of the main bright spots for an economy battling headwinds as a possible recession looms, Reuters reported.
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New Zealand’s battle with inflation had shown signs of easing before Cyclone Gabrielle wrecked homes, downed power lines and washed away roads after making landfall earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported. Now, officials at the South Pacific country’s central bank are assessing how the rebuilding effort could complicate their campaign to bring price pressures under control.
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