NZ businesses reeling, confidence shattered

NZ businesses reeling, confidence shattered
Staff reporters
Covid-19 has shattered business confidence with a net 61 percent of firms expecting lower activity in the year ahead in ANZ’s preliminary April data.  The number was 34 points lower than the March read.Headline business confidence fell another 9 points to 73 percent of businesses feeling dire.“We’ve never seen numbers like these,” said ANZ Bank New Zealand chief economist Sharon Zollner. The preliminary results covered the period from March 31 to April 6 and include 238 respondents.  A net 54 percent of firms expect to cut jobs and a...