WELLINGTON (Reuters) – A coronavirus epidemic will have an “inevitable” impact on New Zealand’s economic growth, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday, but added that the effect would be manageable, even though it was too early to say how big it would be.
Travel and work curbs prompted by the outbreak, which has killed more than 900 people in China and sparked a global health emergency, are putting the squeeze on New Zealand firms doing business in the world’s second-biggest economy.
“Already we are seeing China reflect in some of their projections that they will have an impact,” Ardern told a news conference.
“Because we are seeing a global impact, inevitably we will see an impact here.”
New Zealand exporters of meat, dairy, timber and seafood have faced cancellations in China, the country’s biggest trading partner, which accounts for the majority of its sales of food products and in the tourism and services sector.
It was too early to say how big the impact would be, Ardern said, adding that the government is working with the tourism and education sectors, as well as traders, to limit the fallout.
“There will be implications for us economically….of that I have no question,” she said. “It will have an impact on our GDP figures.”
She added, “But it is something we can manage.”
The economy grew at an annual rate of 2.9% last year, slightly below expectations, as demand was partly hurt by a trade war between the United States and China.
New Zealand’s central bank is expected to hold rates at record lows of 1.0% at a policy review on Wednesday, but an easing could come soon, prompted in part by the epidemic.
Australian bank Westpac has said New Zealand’s first-quarter gross domestic product will be 0.6% lower than previously thought, due to the virus impact, assuming a two-month ban on travel and one month of disruption in China’s factories.
New Zealand has had no confirmed cases of virus infections.
(Reporting by Praveen Menon; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.
The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.
The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.
In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.
Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in the base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 172.18 points at 23,383.35.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 34.99 points at 40,826.72. The S&P 500 index was up 10.56 points at 5,564.69, while the Nasdaq composite was up 74.84 points at 17,470.37.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.55 cents US compared with 73.59 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up $2.00 at US$69.31 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.32 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$40.00 at US$2,582.40 an ounce and the December copper contract was up six cents at US$4.20 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
