Equities under pressure; US job openings at 7 month high; German sentiment rises; Aussies unprepared for China slump; NZ tax on wages OECD lowest; UST 10yr yield at 2.30%; oil up, gold jumps; NZ$1 = 69.6 US¢, TWI-5 = 74.9

Here's my summary of the key events overnight that affect New Zealand, with news taxes on wages in New Zealand are among the lowest in the OECD.

But first, as we head towards the long holiday weekend, the S&P 500 is on track for its worst day in three weeks amid mounting geopolitical tensions.

In the US, job openings rose to a seven-month high in February while the pace of hiring slipped, pointing to a growing skills mismatch and a further tightening of their labour markets.

In Germany, economic sentiment improved sharply and much more than expected in April, pointing to a pickup in economic growth in the months ahead for them.

In Australia, consulting firm Deloittes is warning that there is little an Aussie government could do if China falls off the rails. That could happen, they say, if there is a trade war, a banking crisis or a loss of public confidence as asset (house) prices fell. The Deloitte modelling is based on a scenario in which China’s growth rate slows from the 6.5% targeted this year to less than 3%. A downturn in China would bring a recession in Australia costing 500,000 jobs and sending house and share prices slumping. The reason the Aussie government couldn't lean against such an impact is their budget already deep in deficit and the RBA’s interest rates are at a record low. So there would be little authorities could do to soften the impact of a slump in China.

New Zealand not only doesn't now have a budget deficit, it has also scored second best in the OECD's review of Taxing Wages. And for families with children, taxes on their earnings in New Zealand are the lowest of all the OECD counties surveyed.

In New York, the UST 10yr yield is noticeably lower at 2.30%.

Oil prices are up slightly today and now just over US$53 for the US benchmark, while the Brent benchmark is now just over US$56 a barrel.

But the gold price is sharply higher on those geopolitical tensions, up US$20 at US$1,273/oz.

However the New Zealand dollar starts today little changed at 69.6 USc. On the cross rates the Kiwi dollar is up to 92.8 AU¢ and against the euro is at 65.6 euro cents. The NZ TWI-5 index is now at 74.9.

If you want to catch up with all the changes yesterday, we have an update here.

The easiest place to stay up with event risk today is by following our Economic Calendar here ».