A review of things you need to know before you sign off on Thursday; Kiwibank then Westpac trim mortgage rates, homes for FHBs now affordable, granny flat rules eased, emissions fall, swaps stable, NZD softish, & more

Here are the key things you need to know before you leave work today (or if you work from home, before you shutdown your laptop).

MORTGAGE RATE CHANGES
Kiwibank is the next to cut most fixed rates. Details here. Also cutting was the Co-op Bank, and General Finance. Then late in the day, Westpac went again trimming a bit more from their fixed rates. All rates are here. And note, you can compare mortgage offers with our new calculator that takes into account other costs and cashback incentives, here.

TERM DEPOSIT/SAVINGS RATE CHANGES
Both Westpac and the Co-operative Bank cut rates today. And we have summarised where TD rates have landed, here. All updated term deposit rates less than 1 year are here, for 1-5 years, they are here.

ALMOST UNIVERSALLY AFFORDABLE
Our September update of our Home Loan Affordability research shows house buying is now the most affordable it has been for first home buyers in more than four years - in all parts of the country except Tauranga, Queenstown and certain parts of Auckland. It's a situation we worried we would never get to, but falling interest rates and falling house prices have really turned things around nearly everywhere. And the new drive for more intensive housing in the inner Auckland suburbs that are currently 'heritage' and 'leafy' will likely help as well.

NOW'S GOOD
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LENDING CROWD RE-LAUNCHES
Peer-to-peer platform Lending Crowd has relaunched for personal lending, offering secured and unsecured loans from $2,000 to $200,000. At this stage, all loans are being funded solely by majority shareholder Finance Direct, a licensed non-bank deposit taker covered by the Depositor Compensation Scheme (DCS). Direct investor options are promised in the future.

BACKYARD HOUSING TO BE MADE EASIER
Legislation passed today will allow from early 2026 construction of a single-storey, granny flat up to 70 m2 without needing a building consent if the design is simple and complies with the Building Code, construction is completed or supervised by licensed professionals, and the homeowners notifies their local council before they commence building and once it is completed. The exemption will only apply to granny flats built after the new law and regulations come into effect. Any construction started before commencement will still require a building consent.

NZX50 TURNS FIRMISH
As at 3pm, the overall NZX50 index was firmer in its Thursday session, up +0.3% so far. That puts it -0.3% lower over the past five working days. It is up +2.2% year-to-date. From a year ago it is now up +4.4%. Market heavyweight F&P Healthcare is down -1.7% today. Vista, F&P Healthcare, Heartland and Kathmandu lead the gains, but Gentrack, Briscoes, SkyTV, and Serko weigh on the index.

BIG DEMAND, LOWER YIELDS
There were more than 150 bids at today's three-part NZGB bond tender and they bif almost $1.8 bln for the $450 mln available (although demand was marginally less than at the previous two events). In all three cases, yields dipped from the prior equivalent event for the same maturities.

FEWER EMISSIONS ALL ROUND
A recession can be good for some things, like our emissions lels. StatsNZ reported that on a s.a. basis total emissions, for all industries and households, were down -1.5%, or -287 kilotonnes (kt) of carbon dioxide equivalent, in the June 2025 quarter (compared to the March quarter. If we look at their actual data, total emissions were 17,173 KT or CO2 emissions equivalent in the June quarter, down -4.0% from the same quarter in 2024. Household emissions fell only -1.5% however. Ag sector emissions fell -1.1% on that basis, a -94 kt drop. Manufacturing's emissions fell -165 kt, and the electricity & gas sector fell -353 kt. One of the few sectors not to record a decrease was the commercial transport sector, but they didn't cause an increase either. Only household transport generated an increase in emissions on this basis.

SWAP RATES ON HOLD
Wholesale swap rates are will likely be little-changed today across the board. Keep an eye on our chart below which will record the final positions closer to 5pm. The 90 day bank bill rate was unchanged on Wednesday at 2.52%. Today, the Australian 10 year bond yield is up +1 bp from yesterday at 4.12%. The China 10 year bond rate is unchanged at 1.77%. The NZ Government 10 year bond rate is little-changed at 3.99%. The RBNZ data is now all delayed with Wednesday's rate down -1 bp to 3.96%. The UST 10yr yield is down another -1 bp at 3.95%.

EQUITIES MOSTLY LOWER AGAIN
The local equity market is now up +0.3% in Thursday trade so far. However, the ASX200 is little-changed in afternoon trade. Tokyo has opened down -1.2%. Hong Kong is down -0.7% at its open. Shanghai is also down -0.7% to start their Thursday trade. Singapore is up a minor +0.1% at its open. The Wall Street ended its Wednesday trade down -0.5% on the S&P500.

OIL UP
The oil price in the US is up +US$2.50 to just under US$60/bbl and the international Brent price is now just on US$64/bbl.

CARBON PRICE SOFT
There have been very few trades again today and the price has moved to $55/NZU. The next official carbon auction is on December 3, 2025 and likely heading for another failure. See our daily chart tracker of the NZU price for carbon, courtesy of emsTradepoint.

GOLD RETREATS SLIGHTLY
In early Asian trade, gold is down another -US$17 from this time yesterday, now at US$4074/oz.

NZD MARGINALLY SOFTER
The Kiwi dollar is down -10 bps from this time yesterday at 57.3 USc. Against the Aussie we are down -10 bps at 88.4 AUc. Against the euro we are also down -10 bps at 49.4 euro cents. This all means the TWI-5 is down -10 bps at 61.9.

BITCOIN DIPS AGAIN
The bitcoin price is now at US$108,139 and down -0.3% from this time yesterday. Volatility has again been low, at just under +/- 1.0%.

This soil moisture chart is animated here.

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