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.
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4 Comments
given that government spending on health is declining in real terms, can you really justify the implication that wealth is being transferred from ordinary taxpayers faster than before?
What about health outcomes? There is more to personal wealth than financial assets.
The claim did seem a bit of a cheap shot, given no data to support it. That we have extra nurses and doctors is not much of a surprise given an ageing population. What percentage increase the number relates to is unclear. I do see private surgeons in relatively flash cars, but am not sure public doctors are, and suspect most nurses are not.
More good news than you can shake a stick at. Roll on innovation. The corn production vs. area farmed chart is a cracker.
"Over the past several decades, through technological innovation, Americans now grow more food on less acres, eat more sources of meat that are less land-intrusive, and used water more efficiently so that water use is lower than in 1970. The result: lands that were once used for farms and logging operations are now returning as forests and grasslands, along with wildlife, such as the return of humpback whales off the shores of New York City."
http://thebreakthrough.org/index.php/journal/issue-5/the-return-of-natu…
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