Here are the key things you need to know before you leave work today.
MORTGAGE RATE CHANGES
NBS has cut their floating rate to 4.95% 6.95%. ANZ also advised that their business and agri floating rate business bases have all also been reduced by -75 bps.
TERM DEPOSIT RATE CHANGES
Bank of Baroda trimmed all rates of 1 year and longer by -25 bps, plus a few short rates by -5 bps.
RESCUE FUNDING IS 3:1, BUSINESS:PEOPLE
The Government has announced a phase 1 support package worth $12.1 bln, or 4% of GDP. Details here. The business support portion is $9.3 bln. The beneficiary support portion is $2.8 bln.
ISOLATION BITES
Air New Zealand says it is reducing trans-Tasman capacity by -80% between March 30 and June 30 this year.
THREE NEW COVID-19 CASES
The Ministry of Health says there are three new cases of COVID-19 in New Zealand. Two are in a Wellington family recently returned from the United States, and the third is a Dunedin man recently returned from Germany. That takes the official total to 11.
EQUITY MARKET RESPONDS
The NZX50 Capital index opened today down a sharp -4.3% mirroring international falls. But as the size of the Budget rescue package hope rose, it narrowed to -1.0% just before the announcement. After the release of the details, the overall Index turned positive and is currently up +0.4%. However it has slipped back to -0.3% in late trade
HOLDING UP
Housing market auction activity in Auckland at Barfoots has been stable for the past three weeks at a good level above 50% sales rate.
'IT WON'T AFFECT ME'
The latest local consumer confidence survey is out, this one from Westpac MM. They say: "With New Zealand wrestling with the twin headwinds of Coronavirus and drought, consumer confidence has fallen to below average levels. – New Zealand households are worried about where the economy is heading, and that is weighing on their plans for spending. – While households are nervous about the economic outlook, at this stage they are less concerned about how they will personally be affected. However, that could change over the coming months."
NO LONGER TRANSPARENT
Are you an Open Country Dairy supplier? This dairy company no longer releases its milk payout data, making its offer to farmers opaque and non-transparent. We want to keep an accurate record of dairy company payout levels, so if you have that information for OCD, we would be pleased to receive it.
The world is changing fast and we now need your support more than ever. Quality journalism is expensive and in these very troubled times our ad revenues are becoming very uncertain. We provide our coverage free to readers, and if you value that, we ask that you Become a Supporter. To do that, either click on the Red button below, or on the Black button at the top of this page. The level of your support is up to you. Thank you. (If you are already a Supporter, you're a hero.)
BNPL "ILLEGAL LOANS"?
The California Department of Business Oversight has announced a settlement with point-of-sale lender Afterpay in which the company agreed to stop making illegal loans, refund US$905,000 to California consumers and pay more than US$90,000 in administrative fees. The refunds represent all the fees Afterpay has collected from more than 640,000 Californian customers in so-called “buy now, pay later” transactions that the DBO concluded were illegal loans.
RAMPANT RISES
The latest compilation of Covid-19 data is here. The global tally is now 182,000 of officially confirmed cases, up +60% in a week. There are now 101,000 cases outside China. Four European countries account for more than half that; Italy (27,980), Spain (9942), Germany (7272) and France (6650). Also rising very fast is the USA (4661) which is up +15% from when we checked just this morning. From a low base, the numbers are rising fast in Australia too. The global official death toll now exceeds 7000.
THE YO-YO CONTINUES
Earlier today, Wall Street closed depressed, completely unimpressed by the US Fed and US Administration responses to the risks facing them. The S&P500 ended down an eye-watering -12%. Shanghai has opened down -0.9%, Hong Kong down -0.7% and Tokyo up +1% after staring the day lower. The ASX200 is currently up +3.3%. That rise is because the US Futures market is suggesting that there will be a big rally on Wall Street tomorrow.
LOCAL SWAP RATES RISE
Wholesale swap rates have risen and steepened. The two year is up +8 bps on the day, the five year is up +17 bps and the ten year is up +26 bps from this time yesterday. The 90-day bank bill rate is up +2 bps to 0.66%. The markets 'buy' the RBNZ commitment to hold the OCR at its new rate for a year. In Australia, their swap curve is flat and little-changed. The Aussie Govt 10yr is up +19 bps to 1.00%. The China Govt 10yr is up +2 bps at 2.74%. The NZ Govt 10 yr yield is up +20 bps to 1.23%. The UST 10yr has also risen during today's trading to now at 0.80%
NZ DOLLAR HOLDS
The Kiwi dollar rose almost +½c on the Government's stimulus announcement. Just prior to the release it was 60.5 USc and rose to 60.9 USc. But is has subsequently fallen back to 60.5 USc. Against the Aussie we are a bit softer at 98.9 AUc. Against the euro we are down slightly to 54.1 euro cents. That means the TWI-5 is unchanged at 66.7.
BITCOIN HOLDS
Bitcoin is now at US$5,222 and very little different from this time yesterday. The bitcoin price is charted in the currency set below, and today it is worth taking a look.
This soil moisture chart is animated here.
The easiest place to stay up with event risk today is by following our Economic Calendar here ».
We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment
Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making such comments. Our current comment policy is here.