Here are the key things you need to know before you leave work today.
TODAY'S MORTGAGE RATE CHANGES
Sovereign launched a mortgage 'special' of 5.1% for a one year fixed term today. But it is an offer that is not available through ASB (who owns Sovereign).
TODAY'S DEPOSIT RATE CHANGES
No changes here today. But we are expecting to report on Monday that a major bank will be cutting rates further.
GROWING CONCERN
China's inward foreign direct investment was up +11% in April, far higher than the +2% expected. But it may be debatable it is sustainable. In fact, top Chinese officials are clearly worried about their economy and today were expressing concerns that the country "faces large trade pressure on weak global demand".
INCOME TRANSFERS
Data out today from the Ministry of Health shows that over the period from 2008 to 2015, there are 1,700 more doctors in the DHB system and almost 4,200 more nurses. You can dig into where these extra health professionals are by DHB here. These are all high-paid positions. Wealth is being transferred quite quickly from ordinary taxpayers to the medical profession. (In my neighborhood, it is the doctors who have the flashiest houses and cars.)
A REGIONAL TRANSFER
The closure of older, smaller regional prisons is resulting in job losses there. 194 more were announced today. But in larger facilities, it is easier for staff to control larger prison populations and provide them with a wider range of 'services'.
NO SIGNS YET
Today's update of dairy prices from the USDA does not reveal any uptick in prices yet. In fact they showed a small softness in SMP pricing.
WHOLESALE RATES RISE AGAIN
Wholesale swap rates rose over night following Wall Street trading but in local trading today they have fallen back quite noticeably. Across the board, these rates are now down -4 to -6 bps. The 90 day bank bill rate is also lower, now at 3.52%.
NZ DOLLAR JUMPS
The New Zealand dollar has fallen today on the back comments out of China blaming weak demand for their poor export data in April. As of late this afternoon it is at 74.7 USc, 92.7 AUc, 65.5 euro cents, and the TWI-5 is now up at 77.3. Check our real-time charts here.
You can now see an animation of this chart. Click on it, or click here.
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