The Mike Hosking Breakfast

The number of people behind on payments in June fell slightly from May, but is largely unchanged compared to the same time last year.  Latest Centrix data shows there were 478 thousand people in arrears, representing more than 12% of the credit-active population.  Managing Director Keith McLaughlin says they'd normally expect the figure to fall further over winter - but people are being impacted by things outside their control.  He says the costs of insurance, rates and power are leaving their mark, and that's why arrears are a bit sticky at the moment.  He told Mike Hosking there will be an ongoing improvement in household budgets as interest rates continue to fall.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand has yet to hear from the US ahead of Donald Trump's latest tariff deadline – 4pm today, New Zealand time.  The White House says all countries will have heard from the US by that time.  The US President has indicated he'll raise tariffs, including the 10% baseline tariff imposed on goods from New Zealand and most other countries.  Trade Minister Todd McClay told Mike Hosking our Government is still waiting to hear what that increase will be.  He says there are indications that the new minimum base line tariff rate will be 15%, and it's an anxious time for exporters.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you want to talk about doing stuff that matters, this week will produce one of the great ones.  Repealing the oil and gas ban, as the Government are about to do, puts right an egregious wrong – possibly the most egregious wrong of the last Government.  What gives this current Government a better than even chance of a second term is the fact the damage done to the economy was done by the very same people who are still in Labour, still running Labour, and presumably will still argue for the same recipe of destruction next year.  Megan Woods drove the oil and gas ban under the instruction of you-know-who. There was no warning, no consultation. Just a fateful announcement in Taranaki.  It was idealism at its very worst. If we had all the windmills and solar panels and batteries in place it might have made more sense.  But as we have seen and felt for the past handful of winters, we don’t. Not even close.  What has made it particularly galling is that Australia has doubled down on gas. It understands gas is the transition fuel, while the so-called renewable transformation takes place.  Australia's gas industry is run out of Western Australia, which is run by a Labour Government, and fed to the rest of Australia, which is run by a Labour Government.  And that, as I have said before, is what can make Labour palatable. A centrist Labour party is electable i.e. Albanese's version or Hawke's.  The Ardern and Hipkins version look like a bunch of wonks who never met an economy they couldn't wreck.  Now, the repeal won't solve everything overnight. Our reputation is so damaged that a lot of face time and explaining has had to be undertaken with potential investors, hence the Government's $200m stake in the game fund.  If you ever wanted a living, breathing, tangible example of a Government that simply didn’t get it, think back to your last couple of winters where the coal pile is a mile high, the rain may or may not have come, the gas reports keep getting worse, the spot price heads to the stratosphere and your power bill continues to head to the roof.  That is Labour's energy policy.  That is the Labour Government's idea of a fun winter.  Getting that repealed is rectifying a shockingly shallow, ill-conceived idea and a monumental mistake. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An instantly recognisable face and name, Jeremy Piven is hitting New Zealand shores for the first time.   The actor and comedian is best known for the roles of Harry Selfridge and Ari Gold – the latter of which he won a Golden Globe Award and three consecutive Emmys.  But it’s not film or television that’s brought him here, instead Piven is bringing his stand-up comedy tour to the stage.   Piven has been performing from a young age, with both his parents being actors in their own right, and practically raising him in a theatre.   “I've been butchering some of the great writers of all time, I’ve been butchering it since I was eight years old.”  Piven’s foray into stand-up comedy came from a desire for balance, stretching and developing his performing muscles.  “I make that transition and get up there and do my thing with that, and then go back to acting, and it makes you a better actor,” he told Hosking.  “Most actors are sitting idle, they have a lot of rust on them ... with standup, I’m performing all the time.”  “There’s no rust on me.”  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 31st of July, Kiwibank has been given the go-ahead for their capital raise. So will another $500 million help them compete with the big Aussie banks?  Air traffic control costs are going up 17.7% over three years, so who will be bearing the brunt of those costs?  And Actor and comedian Jeremy Piven pops into the studio for a chat ahead of his Auckland stand-up show.  Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An appointment sure to pique the interest of many New Zealand football followers.   Olympic gold medal-winning coach Bev Priestman's penned a two-year deal to take charge of the Phoenix women's side.  Priestman —who led the Canadian women's team to Olympic glory in 2021— has just finished serving a one-year ban from the game for her role in the Canadian team’s misuse of drones at last year’s Olympics.  She told Mike Hosking that it’s a long suspension and not something she’s proud of, but in that time she’s had a chance to learn, reflect, and grow.  Priestman says she can’t wait to get on the grass and do what she loves every day again.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Agriculture is leading the way as the country's top performing industry.   Xero’s latest Insights report shows consistent under-performance in New Zealand’s small business sector in the past year, with sales falling by 0.1% in the June quarter.  Country manager Bridget Snelling told Mike Hosking sectors that are more sensitive to consumer spending and interest rates are being hit hardest.   She says construction is down 6.4%, retail is holding flat, and hospitality is down 2.1%, so it's tough conditions for small businesses.   However, sales in the month of June rose 4.4%, the strongest monthly increase since April 2024.  Snelling says we're in an unstable global economic situation, and people are not feeling confident to spend as they may have done in a more prosperous economic time.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's a belief it's going to be a long journey to get Kiwibank into the ring with the big leagues.  Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced the bank's parent company is being allowed to raise $500 million from investors to help it compete with the four major banks.  Simplicity founder Sam Stubbs says Kiwibank will need more capital over time.  He told Mike Hosking if the country has five banks making profits, at least one will re-invest in KiwiSaver.  Stubbs says it'll bring pricing pressures into the market, which there's very little of right now.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Concern over a never-ending pile of costs for airlines as our air traffic control prices soar.  Provider of the service, Airways, is putting its fees up 17.7% over the next three years.  It says its pricing is based on the number of flights scheduled in and out of each airport.  Airline Representatives Executive Director Cath O'Brien told Mike Hosking some countries' governments invest in these services, but here, airlines pay for everything.  She says they pay for air traffic control the civil aviation authority, and also airport buildings.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Resources Minister says New Zealand's missed a trick with geothermal energy.  Shane Jones' draft strategy lays out a goal of doubling its production by 2040.  He says we should have begun investment seven years ago, when we banned oil and gas exploration.  Jones told Mike Hosking we have some great expertise on geothermal energy that we should be harnessing.  He says Indonesia and other areas are investing in this, and our New Zealanders are more highly regarded there, than here.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.