Last week’s gross domestic product (GDP) report was comforting, coming in above expectations and pointing to the strongest improvement in 18 months. That was a welcome piece of good news, following a difficult February reporting season littered with cautious comments from management teams. In contrast, business confidence measures have rebounded strongly, which seems out of…

Global flash PMIs for March will be a focal point early in the week, while PCE inflation will be one of the US highlights. The Conference Board’s US consumer confidence index will be of interest on Tuesday too, following a slide in the University of Michigan measure last week. Australia’s 2025/26 Federal Budget will be…

As of last week, the S&P 500 in the US had fallen ten per cent from its February highs. A fall of that magnitude is generally considered a market correction, so we’re officially in one of those now. Market corrections are normal. This is the 34th that the S&P 500 has experienced since 1960, so…

Central banks will be in focus this week with monetary policy decisions due in the US, Japan and the UK. The Fed will be the obvious highlight and although no change to interest rates is expected, markets will be interested in the commentary and a fresh set of projections. Locally, the main event will be…

Players and spectators at the New Zealand Open presented by Sky Sport helped raise over $31,000 for charity during the tournament. Major tournament sponsor and wealth management firm Craigs Investment Partners sponsored two charity fundraising initiatives ‘Birdies for Charity’ and ‘Closest to the Pin’ during the event at Queenstown’s Millbrook Resort. The amount raised was…

After two consecutive years of 25 per cent plus returns, the US sharemarket has hit a few speed bumps in 2025. The S&P 500 index is down 2.5 per cent so far this year, and looking wobbly as investors fret over the threat of tariffs and trade tensions. However, as they say in investment circles…

This week’s highlight will be the February inflation report in the US, with the University of Michigan survey also in focus amidst weakening confidence and rising inflation expectations. Developments on the tariff front will also have a big impact on market sentiment. On Monday, China is set to impose tariffs of up to 15% on…

Every once in a while, you hear talk of how much worse off you’d be if you’d missed the ten best days in a given period. It usually happens during a rough patch, in the hope it’ll calm investors down and ensure they stay the course rather than panicking and selling at the wrong time….

The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is #AccelerateAction, so we asked our colleagues to tell us about the actions they’re taking to accelerate gender equality. We believe creating an inclusive environment requires effort from everyone, regardless of their role or position. International Women’s Day is an opportunity to reflect on the progress we’ve…

February is done and dusted, and with that so is the latest New Zealand company reporting season.  It turned out to be a choppy February which included 1) tariff uncertainty early in the month, 2) our first RBNZ decision for 2025, and 3) company outlook statements that didn’t quite show the green shoots the market…