Kiwibank has been in the news again, with the Government announcing it will consider tapping KiwiSaver funds and other large investors for another $500 million of capital. Our state-owned bank has long been touted as a candidate for an initial public offering (IPO), which means a sharemarket listing which would make it available to anyone…

Financial markets are difficult to predict, especially over short timeframes, and in investing terms 12 months is extremely short. I don’t have a lot of faith in forecasts, predictions or targets, so it’s a bit hypocritical of me to be offering them. However, I have equally little time for analysts that sit firmly on the…

It’s been a good year for the local sharemarket. The NZX 50 index is up 11.0 per cent so far, which sees it on track for its best year in four. Most of our biggest companies have performed well, but one notable exception is Spark. It’s share price is down more than 40 per cent…

As we head towards the Christmas season, the NZX 50 is on track to post its best annual performance in four years. This comes despite the domestic economic backdrop continuing to splutter. Investors are looking beyond the current macro weakness, and position for an eventual recovery as the benefits of interest rate cuts flow through….

Today marks the 230th day of working for the year, according to my rough calculation. This means for the rest of the year, women in New Zealand are effectively working for free due to the gender pay gap. According to Statistics New Zealand, the national median gender pay gap as of June 2024 was 8.2%,…

The US sharemarket has pushed higher since the election, building on the strong gains we saw leading up to it. The S&P 500 index is up 27 per cent (including dividends) so far in 2024, on the back of a similar rise last year. Despite the 60 per cent return since the end of 2022,…

There’s a lot of excitement out there amongst borrowers, particularly those with a mortgage renewal coming up. The message boards are full of people speculating on how low rates will go, and strategising how to play it for maximum advantage. While the optimism is justified, some caution applies as well. If you’re in the midst…

Alternative assets like private equity, private debt, infrastructure and commodities are a different kind of investment to conventional shares and bonds. At Craigs, we have recently introduced alternatives as a new asset class for our clients. For many years, alternative assets were the domain of only large investors like sovereign wealth funds and university endowment…

As markets and economists had expected, the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates again last week. However, the post-announcement press conference was a little different to usual, coming hot on the heels of the election. Fed Chair Jerome Powell fielded the usual array of economic questions, as well as several about President-elect Donald Trump. He…

It was a very successful night for Donald Trump and the Republican Party. While the polls were close, Trump was the favourite leading up to the election, at least in the eyes of betting markets and Wall Street. However, the strength of his victory was a surprise. Few predicted he would win the popular vote,…