A saga of incomprehension

How I got lost in a sea of confusion about money printing losses. (Image: Pixabay)

Mon, 17 Apr 2023

When Treasury made public a memo estimating the direct fiscal loss to the government from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s large-scale asset programme (LSAP) is about $10.5 billion, I assumed that was on top of the mark-to-market losses on the LSAP bonds themselves.I was wrong, though neither I nor my colleagues can figure out why or how these two losses on two separate piles of money are supposed to be counting the same thing.The Treasury memo said its $10.5b estimate reflects the fact that the Reserve Bank of NZ (RBNZ) had bought back...

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 with two clicks, an email or a phone call.
Find out more.

We are serious about journalism.

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 }}

World Opinion

Will policy chaos trigger a flight from the US dollar?

A full-scale flight from USD assets could force the government to default on its debts.

The Washington Post 5:00am

Technology

What Apple has at stake in China

The iPhone maker is heavily reliant on the Chinese manufacturing economy.

The Wall Street Journal 5:00am

Markets Market close

Tourism Holdings and inflation updates drive NZX up

Tourism Holdings could be one of the most directly impacted shares of the US tariffs.

Tom Raynel 17 Apr 2025

Tourism Holdings and inflation updates drive NZX up

Sponsored

Bayleys Total Property Issue 3 out now

Backed by Bayleys’ national strength and global reach

Bayleys

Sponsored

Go beyond reporting zero emissions

Clean energy that helps businesses and communities thrive

Meridian Energy

More Finance

Finance

FNZ extends controversial catch-up offer

Fintech FNZ has extended its deadline for “catch-up” equity offers, as employee shareholders say discontent grows.In March, the global fintech offered its class B shareholders a “catch-up” offer after it revealed their holdings could be massively diluted following its August capi...

Victoria Young 16 Apr 2025