RBNZ shifts to sole focus as inflation picture improves

Inflation staying hot will continue to worry RBNZ. (Image: Getty)

Thu, 14 Dec 2023

Annual inflation could fall below 5% in the fourth quarter, but economists say still-hot domestic inflation will continue to worry the central bank.Stats NZ published its selected price indexes data on Wednesday, a new monthly data set.Food prices fell 0.2% versus October while rents rose 0.3%. Domestic airfares were up 3.6% and international airfares fell 3.8%. Petrol was down 2.7% on the month.The data covers 45% of the consumer price index and “suggests the skew of near-term headline risks has shifted to the downside”, said...

Subscribe to BusinessDesk

Stay informed on business, government and financial developments across New Zealand.

Deeply researched, twice-edited and fact-checked news
Annual subscribers also receive a complimentary subscription to The Wall Street Journal
Personalised email news alerts, plus gift up to 5 stories a month to non-subscribers

You can cancel anytime.

We are serious about journalism.

Already a Subscriber ? Sign in here.

Name {{ registerForm.errors.get('name') }}

Email address {{ registerForm.errors.get('email') }}

Phone Number {{ registerForm.errors.get('phone') }}

Job Title {{ registerForm.errors.get('title') }}

Password Minimum password length of 8 characters.
Require at least one upper and lowercase, numeric, and special character. {{ registerForm.errors.get('password') }}

Repeat password {{ registerForm.errors.get('password_confirmation') }}

We had trouble validating your card. It's possible your card provider is preventing us from charging the card. Please contact your card provider or customer support.

Credit Card

Cardholder's name

{{ __(plans[index].name) | capitalize }} {{ plans[index].attributes.old_price | currency }} {{ plans[index].price | currency }}

All subscriptions auto renew but are easy to cancel.

I Accept The Terms Of Service

{{ registerForm.errors.get('terms') }}

Tax: {{ taxAmount(selectedPlan) | currency }}

Total Price Including Tax: {{ priceWithTax(selectedPlan) | currency }} {{ selectedPlan.type == 'user' && spark.chargesUsersPerSeat ? '/ '+ spark.seatName : '' }} {{ selectedPlan.type == 'user' && spark.chargesUsersPerTeam ? '/ '+ __('teams.team') : '' }} / {{ __(selectedPlan.interval) | capitalize }}

Infrastructure

Govt to dial-down Auckland density plans

City suburbs the likely target as Government decides to bring down 2 million home goal.

Thomas Manch 5:00am

Retail

Banks see 2025 inflation at c.3.0%

Core inflation at or moving back to 1-3% range.

Andy Macdonald 5:00am

Primary Sector

Abbott Laboratories: Who is the newcomer to Pōkeno?

Synlait Milk’s loss is a US company’s gain.

Riley Kennedy 5:00am

Abbott Laboratories: Who is the newcomer to Pōkeno?

Sponsored

Generative AI will disrupt 90% of jobs - what it means for the future of work

Here’s what that means for the future of work in New Zealand.

Cognizant

Sponsored

AI is only as good as its data foundation

NZ leaders explain why clean, connected data drives AI value.

Cognizant

More Economy

Retail

Banks see 2025 inflation at c.3.0%

Core inflation at or moving back to 1-3% range.

Andy Macdonald 5:00am

Economy

Manufacturing activity hits four-year high in December

December's activity for New Zealand’s manufacturing sector hit a four-year high.The seasonally adjusted BNZ – BusinessNZ Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) for December was 56.1 (a PMI reading above 50.0 indicates that manufacturing is generally expanding; below 50.0 th...

Rebecca Howard 16 Jan 2026