ICBC: Innovative funding for green infrastructure

In its latest climate report, ICBC New Zealand, the New Zealand arm of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting New Zealand’s climate transition and is actively identifying climate-related risks and opportunities.

“We are in the process of dynamically integrating the green financing concept into our operation and development and striving to create greater value for our stakeholders,” says James Gill, director of corporate and institutional banking at ICBC New Zealand. “We will concentrate our efforts on improving governance, strategy, risk management, metrics, and targets, striving to make greater contributions for a good future.”

Gill says the bank recognises the need for innovative funding solutions to address the country’s infrastructure needs and support the development of green infrastructure.

Over its 11 years of operation in New Zealand, ICBC New Zealand has played a significant role in key infrastructure projects. These include the Transmission Gully motorway, developed through a public-private partnership (PPP), and the Ruakura Superhub – a 490ha development in Hamilton – residential development areas, industrial, retail and logistics, including a 30ha inland port. “Supporting these projects is our way of helping to move New Zealand forward,” says Gill.

“ICBC New Zealand is passionate about the opportunity in New Zealand to build productivity-boosting, climate-resilient infrastructure and improve outcomes for the country.”

The bank also acted as mandated lead arranger and joint sustainability coordinator for a $400 million funding package for Wellington City Council’s new sludge minimisation facility, an environmental initiative adjacent to the existing wastewater treatment plant at Moa Point that is set to reduce landfill waste by 80% and carbon emissions by 60%.

The project was facilitated under the Infrastructure Funding and Financing Act 2020 (IFF), which allows debt to be raised without impacting the council’s balance sheet. This approach preserves the council’s debt capacity for other uses. Instead, Crown Infrastructure Partners will manage a special-purpose vehicle (SPV) that will levy most rate-paying properties in the city for 33 years, starting from July 2024.

Gill says IFF as a model provides another tool for local governments to access private financing over the long term, paying for it via targeting the direct beneficiaries of the projects.

“The defined repayment profile is attractive and allows higher levels of leverage than otherwise might have been possible.”

The project, which began construction in May 2023 and is expected to be completed by June 2026, will use chemical and mechanical processes to treat and dispose of wastewater sludge, generating biogas for heat and electricity to power the treatment process. Sludge is now piped 9km across the city to landfill, where it is buried.

“ICBC New Zealand looks forward to supporting New Zealand’s growth objectives as we have previously through the PPP and IFF infrastructure financing models,” says Gill.

“Our long-term commitment to the country positions us well to support these projects from conception to completion and throughout their operation.”

ICBC helps the world to go greener

As the world’s largest bank by total assets, ICBC is a global leader in sustainable development, promoting green finance and supporting projects that contribute to a sustainable future.

The bank’s latest Corporate Social Responsibility Report, released earlier this year, highlights its commitment to green finance and pursuit of innovation-driven development and new sustainable development opportunities.

Some of the bank’s contributions to sustainable projects include:

Uzbekistan wind power plant

The Dubai branch of ICBC acted as lead arranger, organising a US$900m international syndicated loan with international multilateral institutions to finance a major wind power project in Uzbekistan.

Upon completion, the project is expected to cut carbon emissions by 1.4 million tonnes annually.

By enhancing the power infrastructure in Central Asia, it will play a pivotal role in the region’s energy transition, contributing to global efforts towards sustainable economic and social development.

Green bus project in Hangzhou

The Hangzhou branch of ICBC has been instrumental in advancing Hangzhou’s new energy public transportation system.

The branch has provided over RMB4 billion in cumulative working capital loans and extended more than RMB1b in credits for projects including the acquisition of new energy buses and the construction of stations. As a result, all buses in Hangzhou’s downtown areas have been replaced by new energy buses, making low-carbon transportation a viable and popular choice for the city’s residents.

Marine carbon sink ecological products in Guangdong Province

Nan’ao County Island, located in South China, is home to Guangdong Province’s largest oyster cultivation base, with an annual output exceeding 30,000 tonnes.

Recognising the environmental benefits of oysters, which capture and store carbon dioxide as they grow, the Guangdong branch of ICBC introduced a “loan pledged with right to expected earnings of marine carbon sink” financing product.

This allows farmers to secure loans by pledging the expected earnings from the carbon sink value derived from their oysters, providing crucial financial support for sustainable aquaculture practices.

Green building project in Beijing

The Beijing branch of ICBC, acting as the lead bank, provided a syndicated loan of RMB270m to meet the funding needs of an enterprise for an intelligent green building project using prefabricated components.

After completion, it will be able to achieve an annual production capacity of one million square metres of prefabricated components, while solving problems such as noise, dust, material waste, and environmental pollution in the traditional construction industry and building material manufacture.

Agribusiness & Trade: Has offshore investment swamped our dairy sector? (NZ Herald)

Agribusiness & Trade: Has offshore investment swamped our dairy sector? (NZ Herald)

The allure of New Zealand’s dairy industry has not gone unnoticed on the global stage. The country’s reputation for high-quality dairy products and well-established supply chains has seen international investors increasingly drawn to the sector.

A recent report from market research firm Coriolis on the New Zealand dairy industry lays out the investment landscape in New Zealand dairy processing. The industry has attracted foreign investment from across the globe. China, Japan, Singapore, France, the Netherlands, the UK and Germany are all significant sources of investment.

Coriolis managing director Tim Morris says the “smart money” can see New Zealand is winning in dairy.

“New Zealand is really good at dairy and the rest of the world have realised it,” he says. “Since deregulation of the industry, we have had wave after wave of global firms show up because they know they need to have a position here.”

Despite the presence of multinationals in New Zealand, the report shows that most of the capital committed to the sector remains domestic, both into co-operative processors and through private capital.

In total, the industry is made up of investment from five private equity firms, 14 global multinationals, seven state-owned enterprises, three local co-operatives, three locally listed firms, two Māori investor groups and hundreds of private family interests.

The report lays out five key objectives that are driving strategic investment activity in the New Zealand dairy industry.

1. Strengthening existing market positions
In 2019, Westland Milk Products was bought by Chinese dairy giant Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co Ltd (Yili) for $588 million. Since then, Yili has supported further investments to strengthen the West Coast dairy company’s position.

In 2021, Westland announced it would invest $40m to double its consumer butter manufacturing capacity. The following year it acquired Hamilton-based foodservice butter processor Canary Foods.

Last year, Westland announced a $70m investment to construct a new lactoferrin plant at its Hokitika facility. Supported by parent company Yili, this investment will more than treble production capacity of the multifunctional protein. Lactoferrin has growing international demand across a variety of nutritional categories because of its reported health benefits.

Increased competition as more players enter the market is driving a shift higher up the value chain, with focus shifting to producing higher-margin, value-added products rather than just raw milk.

Morris notes that this more developed competitive framework is a marked change from the past. “This shift necessitates a strategic approach to investment and operations, ensuring that New Zealand’s dairy industry remains competitive on the global stage,” he says.

One such approach is the diversification of product categories into high-value niches such as infant formula (particularly specialty formulas designed for the dietary management of special infant feeding needs), protein supplements, and functional foods that can offer health benefits beyond basic nutrition.

New Zealand produces numerous innovative dairy-derived nutraceuticals. For example, New Image’s Symbiotics brand sells a goat milk drink with phosphatidylserine to support awareness and cognition.

These products not only command higher prices but also cater to growing consumer demands for health and wellness.

2. Arriving to take a position in New Zealand
In the past five years, multinational companies including Lactalis (from France), Froneri (UK), Olam (Singapore), Wilmar (Singapore) and Imanaka (Japan) have entered the New Zealand dairy industry.

The arrival of new players is transforming the sector, with more companies eyeing New Zealand’s milk supply.

One notable entrant stirring up the sector is Singapore-based food and agribusiness conglomerate Olam. It has established a new milk processing and exporting operation in Waikato under the name Olam Food Ingredients (Ofi).

Ofi is challenging Fonterra by offering farmers a premium milk price to entice them away from the co-operative.

Despite this increased competition, the Coriolis report highlights that total milk production in New Zealand peaked in 2015 after a long period of growth but has stalled over the past 8-9 years.

Morris explains that this is due to the balance between milk price paid to farmers and their production costs. With input costs rising faster than milk prices, there has been little incentive to boost production.

3. Seeking new growth platforms
Companies are moving into more attractive areas of the industry. Notable examples include:

Nestle Health Science, a global leader in nutrition, bought The Better Health Company in 2022, which included the supplements brand GO Healthy. Nestle Health Science described the acquisition as a strategic fit, enhancing its global portfolio of active lifestyle and health and wellness brands.
In 2020, New Zealand’s largest seafood company, Sanford, acquired a 50% stake in Two Islands. This merger leverages marine collagen, a by-product of Sanford’s certified sustainable hoki fishery, which is used in Two Islands’ range of beauty and wellbeing products.

4. Investing in increasing sustainability
Companies are investing in sustainability to align with changing customer, consumer and government requirements. Examples include:

Talley’s Group, New Zealand’s second-largest food company, acquired Nature’s Flame, a producer of wood pellet biofuel from Norwegian pulp and paper company Norske Skog. This renewable fuel, derived from timber processing waste streams, is being used to reduce the company’s carbon footprint by replacing coal in some dairy plants.
Fonterra recently announced a $790m plan to decarbonise its operations. The plan includes exploring technologies to phase out coal and transition to renewable energy across its manufacturing sites.

5. Divesting non-core businesses
Fonterra’s recent announcement that it is considering full or partial divestment options for some or all of its global consumer business, which includes well-known brands such as Anchor, as well as its integrated businesses Fonterra Oceania and Fonterra Sri Lanka.

This strategic move will allow the co-operative to focus on being a business-to-business dairy nutrition provider, working closely with customers through its high-performing ingredients and foodservice channels.

Fonterra says this refocus will strengthen its role in the dairy nutrition value chain, leveraging its strength in producing world-class, innovative ingredients for customers to take to consumers.

Another example of divestment was seen from Synlait, which last year announced its plans to sell off its household dairy brands Dairyworks and Talbot Forest Cheese in order to pay down debt. At the time, Synlait said this move would allow it to focus solely on its value-added, advanced nutrition and foodservice businesses.

6. Dairy remains an attractive investment
Morris is clear that the dairy market will remain an attractive investment into the future and doesn’t mince his words on the potential for “alternative milk” to supersede the industry.

“It is easy for people to convince themselves that because their daughter is vegan, or friends of theirs have started to drink oat milk, that everywhere on Earth is suddenly just like them.

“It’s just not true.

“Silicon Valley venture capitalists will try to convince you that we are at peak cow or peak milk or some other such nonsense. Any minute now, mothers everywhere will be feeding their children massive amounts of vat-grown sludge instead of real, natural, healthy milk and dairy products.

“There is no actual evidence anywhere for this common fantasy. Veganism is trending down, fake food start-ups are failing, while milk consumption is heading only one way, up.”

The data supports increasing consumption.

Dairy currently ranks as the third-largest food source by volume, following grains and vegetables, with the average person consuming around 90kg of milk and dairy products annually — equivalent to 117kg of raw milk.

Total global milk consumption is growing. Global raw milk production grew by 169 million tonnes (or 22%) in the last decade, or roughly 17 million tonnes yearly — a figure that equates to a “new New Zealand” (20.7 million tonnes) worth of dairy production every 1.2 years.

In 2022, the global dairy industry produced 930 million tonnes of milk worth an estimated $840 billion — that is at least twice as large as the total revenue of tech giant Apple for the last financial year, and 11,000 times more volume than lithium.

Sunlight of Spain, climate of Bordeaux, and water …

New Zealand is the world’s largest dairy exporter by value, commanding 14% of global trade and a market share that is trending up over the long term.

New Zealand has a robust dairy supply chain, with 4.7 million cows spread across over 10,000 dairy farms. It is the leading dairy supplier for many countries, particularly in Asia, capturing 55% of the China market, 50% of Thailand, 42% of Indonesia, 40% of Malaysia and 61% of Nigeria.

“New Zealand is the size of Italy with the population of Singapore,” says Morris. “It has the sunlight of Spain, the climate of Bordeaux, and abundant water — both on a per-person and a per-square-kilometre basis.”

New Zealand has almost 50 large raw milk intake sites and, depending on definition, 600-700 dairy companies. Extending further into the supply chain, New Zealand also has a farmer-owned dairy genetics firm, two farmer-owned fertiliser firms and three farmer-owned farm supplies firms.

“All of this comes together to make New Zealand the most competitive dairy producer and exporter on the planet,” says Morris.

Capital Markets Report: How artificial intelligence is being used to detect fraud, find sharemarket patterns and act as virtual assistants

Capital Markets Report: How artificial intelligence is being used to detect fraud, find sharemarket patterns and act as virtual assistants

The pace of artificial intelligence (AI) innovation has been remarkable, as has been the speed with which businesses are adopting it.

AI’s impact is evident in virtually every sector, including capital markets and financial services, where it is being used in data analysis and decision-making, customer experience, and operational efficiency.

Recent analysis from McKinsey suggests generative AI could have a significant impact on the banking industry, generating value from increased productivity of 2.8 to 4.7 per cent of the industry’s annual revenues, or an additional US$200 billion ($325b) to US$340b.

In the financial industry, AI is able to rapidly process and extract insights from enormous amounts of data.

It can bring together information from a variety of sources, such as real-time trading data, social media, economic indicators, and geopolitical events.

The analysis of unstructured and complex data was previously time-consuming.

However, machine learning – a key component of AI – is now being used to rapidly identify market patterns. This allows for live insights, which can be critical in financial markets.

Fraud detection
The threat of fraud is a constant concern in the financial sector, requiring detection and prevention abilities to protect both firms and their clients.

Given AI’s ability to identify patterns and anomalies in data, it can process vast amounts of transactions and spot potential fraud with greater speed and accuracy. The ability to process data in real-time is critical in mitigating losses and preventing fraudulent transactions from being completed.

Since AI systems can learn and adapt continuously from historical data, fraud detection capabilities are able to improve over time, identifying new fraudulent tactics as they emerge. This also helps to prevent false positives of legitimate transactions, minimising customer inconvenience.

Later this year, Mastercard will launch its generative AI model that will help banks improve their assessment of transactions. Mastercard says its AI enhancement, which assesses the relationships between multiple entities surrounding a transaction to determine its risk, will boost fraud detection rates on average by 20 per cent and as high as 300 per cent in some instances.

“The precision of the solution – achieved by scanning potential points of sale in real time – has been shown in our own analysis to not only increase accuracy, but also reduce the number of false positives by more than 85 per cent,” says Mastercard’s president of cyber and intelligence, Ajay Bhalla.

Virtual assistance
AI-powered virtual assistants provide the ability to offer 24/7 support, handling inquiries with levels of efficiency that were previously impossible.

This is being used to a varying extent by different organisations in the finance sector, but the highly regulated nature of the industry necessitates cautious implementation.

Speaking at a recent AI summit, Promiti Dutta, Citi’s head of analytics acknowledged the potential of AI and large language models, but noted they can be problematic when precision is the goal.

“Things can go wrong very quickly, and there’s still a lot to be learned,” she said. “In an industry where every single customer interaction really matters, and everything we do has to build trust with customers, we can’t afford anything going wrong with any interaction.”

Dutta said that while a customer might forgive an online shop suggesting a pair of shoes in the wrong colour, the stakes are higher in the financial services.

“If we tell you to get a loan product that you don’t necessarily want or need, you lose a little bit of interest in us because you think ‘Oh, my bank really doesn’t understand who I am’.”

She says that Citi is starting conservatively, and making sure there is always a human in the loop for anything assisted to learn what it is doing – and what it is not doing.

Less risky is the use of virtual assistance internally within firms. Last year, investment bank Morgan Stanley launched its own AI assistant to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of its financial advisers and support staff.

The assistant, developed in collaboration with ChatGPT founder Open AI, provides access to the firm’s internal knowledge database of around 100,000 research reports and documents. It allows users to find and tailor information for clients almost instantaneously.

Morgan Stanley co-president Andy Saperstein told staff that generative AI will “revolutionise client interactions, bring new efficiencies to adviser practices, and ultimately help free up time to do what you do best: serve your clients”.

As well as enhancing client interactions, AI is transforming operational management within these institutions.

Automation of routine tasks, including account management, credit checks and report generation, allows employees to focus on more strategic tasks requiring human insight. This shift not only has the potential to reduce cost, but also enhance efficiency.

Regulatory compliance
In such a highly regulated sector, AI is helping to automate regulatory compliance processes and ensure adherence to rules and regulations. AI-powered systems can also help to eliminate manual errors and reduce the risk of non-compliance.

One example is Citigroup’s response to United States federal regulators’ new capital rules. The investment bank used AI to dissect a 1089-page document to analyse the text and articulate the implications of the changes for the bank’s leadership.

Looking ahead, regulation of AI itself is an area to watch. The financial sector must prepare for a wave of legislation, codes of conduct and guidelines – some of which is already occurring. While the benefits of AI are evident, it has the potential to exacerbate existing risks and introduce new ones.

Firms will have to consider AI within existing compliance frameworks to ensure that as they embrace the advantages of AI, they remain vigilant of its possible pitfalls.

AI driving global stock markets skyward
The recent surge in AI has translated to impressive gains on global stock markets, which saw their strongest first-quarter performance in the past five years. Investors have shown an insatiable appetite for technology stocks, fuelled by the potential of AI to revolutionise industries worldwide.

At the forefront of this market rally is Nvidia, a leading chip designer whose role in the deployment of AI technologies has been crucial. Its market value soared by more than US$1 trillion in just the first three months of this year.

Recent analysis from Goldman Sachs suggests that Nvidia represents the first phase of the AI boom. It says the next phase will involve infrastructure companies that are essential to the development of AI: semiconductor firms, cloud providers, data centres, security software and utilities companies.

The third phase, it projects, will benefit those companies that can enhance their revenues from the adoption and monetisation of AI technologies.

“Software and IT services seem best positioned for this phase of the AI adoption cycle, with many companies describing how their tools will enable other companies to utilise AI,” Goldman Sachs says.

The fourth phase will favour those companies that achieve significant productivity improvement through the adoption and integration of sophisticated AI.

“Software and services and commercial and professional services have the largest potential earnings boost from widespread AI adoption via labour productivity,” Goldman Sachs says. “These three industries have a combination of a high share of their wage bill exposed to AI automation and relatively high labour costs.”

Capital Markets Report: How a record election year will shake up markets - Tim McCready

Capital Markets Report: How a record election year will shake up markets – Tim McCready

2024 has been dubbed “the year of the vote”.

There will be more elections this year than ever before in history, and by year-end, countries accounting for over 60 per cent of the world’s economic output and more than half of its population will have voted.

Some of the most consequential elections for the global financial landscape will be the United Kingdom general election on July 4 and the United States presidential election on November 5.

And just last week, India’s stock market took its worst tumble in four years after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost its parliamentary majority in India’s general election.

The US presidential election will be heated.

During the 2020 presidential debates, then-President Donald Trump warned of a market meltdown if Joe Biden was elected. Now, as the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee up against President Biden, Trump is at it again:

“If we lose, you’re gonna have a crash like you wouldn’t believe,” he told attendees at a campaign rally, suggesting his loss would result in “the largest stock market crash we’ve ever had.”

Yet, US stocks have reached record highs this year under President Biden, though Trump has been quick to take credit for the rise.

“This is the Trump stock market,” he posted on his own social media platform, Truth Social. “Because my polls against Biden are so good that investors are projecting that I will win, and that will drive the market up.”

Regardless of the rhetoric, US market analysts tend to agree that trying to attribute financial market performance in the medium to long-term on election outcomes is a fool’s errand.

Returns are more often dependent on economic and inflation trends.

In the current climate, a strengthening economy, corporate profit growth, expectations of interest rate cuts, and the allure of artificial intelligence are key reasons for stock market bullishness.

Trump’s unexpected election win against Hillary Clinton in 2016 did spark a stock market rally fuelled by promises of deregulation, tax cuts and infrastructure spending.

Last month, Trump made history – as the first former president to be convicted of felony crimes – when a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through hush money paid to porn actor Stormy Daniels, who said the two had sex.

Despite this, he can still campaign and ultimately become President of the United States. The US Constitution has very few restrictions on who is eligible to be a presidential candidate – having a criminal record is not one of them.

Trump’s guilty convictions did affect the share price of Truth Social’s parent Trump Media and Technology Group. The stock made a rip-roaring debut in March surging past US$70 (approx NZ$116) in early trade, giving the firm a market value of more than $9 billion.

But the stock, trading under the ticker “DJT”, fell as much as 15 per cent in extended trading after the convictions were announced – the share price was US$44.59 at the end of last week. Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes blames short sellers for the share price plunge and wants the Nasdaq to investigate.

Polling shows the race to the White House will be tight.

The latest Economist/YouGov poll shows that even after the guilty verdict, Trump remains in lockstep with Biden. Among registered voters, 42 per cent say they plan to vote for Biden, and 42 per cent for Trump.

Persistent inflation means the Biden campaign is struggling to allay voters’ concerns about the economy. There are also widespread concerns about Biden’s age, with a majority of voters who supported him in 2020 now saying that at 81, he is too old to be an effective president.

Although Trump is only four years younger than Biden, voters do not express the same anxieties about his age. However, there is significant uncertainty about the potential chaos a second Trump administration could bring with it.

Trump has promised steep tariffs of “upward of 60 per cent” on all Chinese imports if he regains the presidency – to bolster onshore manufacturing – conceivably leading to a global trade war. There is also concern over the impact on budget deficits from extended tax cuts which could keep inflation high for longer, hurt US government bonds and further blow out the US budget deficit, which is expected to hit $1.5 trillion by the end of the year.

Industries that look to benefit from Trump 2.0 include fossil fuel production and the broader energy sector. Trump has promised a more business-friendly approach to environmental regulation, along with cuts to the Department of the Interior (responsible for the management and conservation of federal lands and natural resources) and other environmental agencies.

He has also pledged to sharply reduce the powers of US financial regulators, which could assist smaller businesses burdened by regulatory compliance.

This move contrasts with the expanded oversight Congress gave the US government to prevent a repeat of the 2008 global financial crisis.

A Biden victory will benefit local industries aligned with his support for clean energy initiatives — including solar and renewable energy. Biden recently announced new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, batteries and solar cells, saying that Chinese government subsidies for EVs and other consumer goods give them an unfair advantage in global trade.

UK on track to change Government?

Meanwhile, the Rishi Sunak-Sir Keir Starmer head-to-head in the United Kingdom looks much more predictable than the US election, with Starmer’s centrist Labour Party consistently polling around 20 points ahead of the governing Conservative Party.

The anticipated change in government draws parallels to the historic 1997 election when the incumbent Conservative Party, led by John Major, suffered a resounding defeat to Tony Blair’s Labour.

When Prime Minister Sunak called the general election much earlier than anticipated last month, financial markets barely reacted to the news. The subdued response can be attributed to several factors. The Labour Party has been polling well ahead of the governing Conservative Party for some time, suggesting a Labour victory is already factored into the market.

The strong lead also means it is unlikely that Labour will adopt any policies that might unsettle the market to attract voters. Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has added further confidence to the market by committing to a self-imposed fiscal rule that will bind any future Labour government.

This stipulates that government debt as a percentage of GDP must decrease by the fifth year of the official forecast period.

According to a Citi analysis of stock market movements since 1979, UK stocks have historically been “relatively flat to down” in the six months following elections.

The analysis excluded the periods of volatile financial conditions during the dotcom crash and the global financial crisis.

The MSCI UK Index, which tracks the performance of large and mid-cap segments of the UK market, has historically risen by around 6 per cent six months after Labour Party victories, while it has decreased by around 5 per cent following Conservative wins.

The FTSE 250, which has a focus on domestic companies, tends to outperform the large-cap FTSE 100 following elections, particularly after Labour victories.

Sectors expected to benefit from the change in government, include house-building, infrastructure and clean energy projects, with support indicated by Labour.

It has also made bold commitments to enhance the financial services sector, which contributed 12 per cent of the UK’s economic output in 2023. Part of its plan includes making the UK a global hub for green finance, implementing a leading green finance regulatory framework, and collaborating with the financial services sector to support decarbonising homes.

It would also reinvigorate capital markets by reviewing the pensions retirement savings to boost investment in infrastructure and green industries.

Project Auckland: Panel discussion on ‘Accelerating Auckland’ (video)

Tim McCready moderates a panel discussion themed “Accelerating Auckland” with CEO of the EMA Brett O’Riley, Deputy Mayor of Auckland Desley Simpson, and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Auckland Dawn Freshwater. The panel discussion was held at the launch of the NZ Herald’s 2024 Project Auckland report following a speech from the Minister for Auckland Hon Simeon Brown.

Dynamic Business: ASEAN key to ambitious trade goals (NZ Herald)

Dynamic Business: ASEAN key to ambitious trade goals (NZ Herald)

Over the past five years, New Zealand’s economic ties with Asean (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) have undergone significant growth, from $17.15 billion in 2017 to $27.42b in 2022.

With 10 member states, the union is New Zealand’s third-largest trading partner — we now trade more in a week with Asean than we did in an entire year in the early 1970s.

The National-led Government has set an ambitious trade goal to double the value of our exports within a decade. Despite the region navigating the same economic challenges that echo worldwide, it is clear Asean will be an important component in New Zealand reaching its lofty ambitions.

The NZ Asean Business Alliance Conference in Kuala Lumpur last month saw more than 250 attendees gather from across the region and New Zealand to explore the tremendous opportunities inherent in mutual collaboration. There is a keen interest to do more and a desire from Asean to deepen its ties with New Zealand.

An economic anchor

Dynamic Business: NZ ministers tout Government’s trade ambitions at US summit (NZ Herald)

Dynamic Business: NZ ministers tout Government’s trade ambitions at US summit (NZ Herald)

Key coalition ministers have articulated a unified vision for New Zealand’s future that embraces innovation, value uplift and enhanced diplomatic ties with the United States and beyond.

The have also pledged to undertake a record number of trade missions in the Government’s first term — more than any government in the history of New Zealand.

Speaking at last week’s United States Business Summit, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters and Trade Minister Todd McClay delivered their first major speeches since the Government’s formation to a room packed with business leaders.

Peters outlined specific actions to unlock economic potential, including maximising the value of bilateral trade, resolving barriers to trade and strengthening supply chains. He stressed the importance of collaboration in industries that are key to building a more prosperous and secure future, including critical technologies and space.

He also spoke of the enduring and special relationship between New Zealand and the United States.

US Business Summit 2023: Call to Order, Tim McCready

CALL TO ORDER

MC: Tim McCready

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United States Business Summit 2023 30 November 2023 at Cordis, Auckland. Brought to you by NZ INC. and Auckland Business Chamber.

US Business Summit 2023: How Brand NZ shows up in the USA and how we can build our value

HOW BRAND NZ SHOWS UP IN THE USA AND HOW WE CAN BUILD OUR VALUE

David Downs, CEO of the New Zealand Story, an ambitious organisation marketing New Zealand to the world presented insights from the latest U.S. research.

Moderator: Tim McCready

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United States Business Summit 2023 30 November 2023 at Cordis, Auckland. Brought to you by NZ INC. and Auckland Business Chamber.

US Business Summit 2023: Prize draw

PRIZE DRAW

Prize draw: Two return business class flights to New York City courtesy of Air New Zealand and a selection of meats from Silver Fern Farms.

Auckland Business Chamber event director Katy Riddell with Air New Zealand senior manager Mark Kennedy.

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United States Business Summit 2023 30 November 2023 at Cordis, Auckland. Brought to you by NZ INC. and Auckland Business Chamber.