"There is a strong sense of 'getting on with it' across the survey results"
- ANZ Bank chief economist Cameron Bagrie
Business confidence in New Zealand eased back slightly in April from March, with firms being less optimistic about their own outlook, an ANZ Bank survey showed on Tuesday. Only 32% of firms expect general business conditions to improve in the upcoming year, the reading which is down from 35% in the March survey. As to the business activity, a net of 30.3% of firms seeing a pickup, compared with 32.4% a month earlier. Despite the deterioration, a gauge is still above the historical average of plus 8%. The report also showed that exports expectations improved, while investment and residential investment intentions reversed the previous month's drop. Firms expected lower profit, while the majority of respondents see an increase of interest rates.
"There is a strong sense of 'getting on with it' across the survey results," said ANZ Bank chief economist Cameron Bagrie.
"There is a strong sense of 'getting on with it' across the survey results," ANZ Chief Economist Cameron Bagrie added later.
© Dukascopy Bank SA