Here are the key things you need to know before you leave work today.
MORTGAGE RATE CHANGES
ICBC has cut both its fixed rates and its floating rate, which is down -30 bps to 3.69% (but that is still higher than Kiwibank's 3.40%). Co-operative Bank also cut fixed rates today, following the main banks down.
TERM DEPOSIT RATE CHANGES
Bank of China cut TD rates. And the Co-operative Bank cut rates for terms 3-15 months.
A SMALL SLIP AFTER A BIG GAIN
Dairy prices slipped -0.7% at today's auction (and were down more in NZ dollars) but that was almost all due to an almost -5% fall in the butter price. For the much more important WMP price, it was up +0.6% and that helps cement in the +8.3% gain recorded at the previous auction, so that farm gate milk price forecasts are under no threat from today's minor slip.
BRYERS CHARGED IN AUSTRALIA
Former head of collapsed Blue Chip Group, Mark Bryers, has been charged with fraud in Australia reportedly after providing "tax structuring advice", and has had his assets seized. He is accused of having a central role in an organised crime operation involving complex fraud. Bryers was never charged in New Zealand for his Blue Chip activities which lost investors more than $2 mln in 2008.
MONEY REMITTERS HIT WITH LARGE AML/CFT PENALTY
In Auckland, the High Court has issued a $7.5 mln judgment in civil proceedings against Auckland based money remitter OTT Trading Group and Christchurch based money remitter, MSI Group. Both were accused of sanitising drug money. OTT is solely owned by Tonghui QI, and MSI is solely owned by Ye Duan.
FLOOD RECOVERY ASSISTANCE
ANZ has announced an assistance package to help farms and other businesses in Northland and the Coromandel manage the aftermath of recent severe flooding. Relief options include suspending loan principal repayments, waiving fees associated with restructuring business loans considered necessary due to impacts of extreme weather, waiving fees for term finance and investments to help get operations back into production, options around early access to term deposit funds; and providing access to discounted short-term funding to help farmers get through the immediate challenges while also protecting their long-term productivity. These options are almost a carbon-copy of the bank's drought assistance for Northland farmers announced in February.
PRIVACY COMMISSIONER CAUTIOUS ABOUT COVIDCARD
Privacy Commissioner John Edwards says the CovidCard proposal involving Rob Fyfe and Sam Morgan needs further careful consideration before a decision is made to adopt it as a contact tracing solution for Covid-19. Edwards says any rush to market in the short term would lock New Zealanders into a proposed solution which could in the medium to long term prove ineffective and expensive. He says there are many unanswered questions as to how the proposal would work, saying many New Zealanders would be uncomfortable having to carry a mandated piece of hardware that records all their contacts for the Government.
M.BOVIS UPDATE
The Government is claiming that New Zealand’s "world-first effort" to eradicate the cattle disease Mycoplasma bovis has made significant progress with the number of infected properties dropping to just four now, after 250 properties were infected in total over the past three years. 69 of these farms were in the North Island, 181 in the South Island. So far 157,854 animals have been culled in the eradication effort and $166 mln in compensation paid (averaging $1052 per culled animal).
BRISCOES TRADING BETTER
The bellwether retailer has advised that "unexpected strength of the sales rebound experienced since the end of lockdown together with cost saving measures implemented by the Company as a result of COVID-19, have positively impacted the business. While it remains unlikely that the Group will achieve last year’s half-year sales and profit, we now expect the first half results to be closer to last year than indicated in our previous announcement."
REBOUND BEFORE ANOTHER FALL
Australian retail sales were up +2.4% in June from May, and rose +8.2% when compared to June 2019. This is better than anticipated and was led by cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services, and clothing, footwear and personal accessory. But this may all come unstuck in July with the growing crisis in Victoria (+484 new cases there today) and the spreading of infections to regional NSW. New restrictions loom for Sydney and NSW.
EQUITY UPDATES
The S&P500 lost some heart in late trading today, closing up less than +0.2% after earlier being up +0.8%. Shanghai has opened a strong +1.0%. But Hong Kong is up much more modestly (+0.3%) while Tokyo has slipped (-0.2%) at their open. Locally, the ASX200 is down -1.1% in early afternoon trade, spooked by the spreading second virus wave in Australia. The NZX50 Capital Index is up +0.2% in late trade.
SWAP RATES UPDATE
Swap rates were probably lower and flatter as the long end sank today. We don't have final wholesale swap rates movement details yet but we will update this later in the day if they show a significant movement. The 90-day bank bill rate is up +1 bp at 0.31%. The Aussie Govt 10yr is up +1 bp to 0.88%. The China Govt 10yr is up by +2 bps to 2.97%. The NZ Govt 10yr yield is also down another -4 bps at 0.83%. The UST 10yr is now under 0.61%.
NZ DOLLAR FIRMS AGAIN
The Kiwi dollar rose sharply last night and has held on to most of that so it is now at 66.5 USc and almost another +¾c rise since this time yesterday making the gain so far this week as +1½c. Against the Aussie we are -½c lower in a day at 93.2 AUc. Against the euro we are marginally firmer at 57.6 euro cents. And that means the TWI-5 is now just over 70.3.
BITCOIN FIRM
The price of bitcoin is a little higher today at US$9,376 and a +2% gain. The bitcoin price is charted in the currency set below.
This soil moisture chart is animated here.
The easiest place to stay up with event risk today is by following our Economic Calendar here ».
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