{"id":831175,"date":"2026-07-29T11:53:18","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T11:53:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/831175\/"},"modified":"2026-07-29T11:53:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T11:53:18","slug":"what-happened-wednesday-interest-co-nz-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/831175\/","title":{"rendered":"What happened Wednesday | interest.co.nz"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Here are the key things you need to know before you leave work today (or if you work from home, before you shutdown your laptop).<\/p>\n<p>MORTGAGE RATE CHANGES<br \/>No changes to report today. All current mortgage rates are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/borrowing\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>. And note, you can compare mortgage offers with our unique calculator that takes into account other costs and cashback incentives, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/calculators\/home-loan-comparison-calculator\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>TERM DEPOSIT\/SAVINGS RATE CHANGES<br \/>No changes here either Also we have some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/personal-finance\/139545\/households-arent-flush-they-used-be-rather-locking-funds-away-term-deposits\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">analysis<\/a> on how household deposits are changing. All updated term deposit rates less than 1 year are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/saving\/term-deposits-1-to-9-months\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">here<\/a>, for 1-5 years, they are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/saving\/term-deposits-1-to-5-years\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>BUSINESS RATE CHANGES<br \/>Business base rates are all rising about now, now that the notice period from the last OCR-induced change has arrived. For example, ANZ is increasing its Working Capital Base Rate +25 bps to 11.00% effective today. Remember, these are base rates; risk premiums apply on top (often 1-4%) plus &#8216;management fees&#8221; (often about 1.5%). Details <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/borrowing\/business-base-rates\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>. (Households with mortgages get a great interest rate deal compared to businesses.)<\/p>\n<p>PAYING LESS MORTGAGE INTEREST<br \/>The latest RBNZ reconciliation of all banks&#8217; mortgage books <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/property\/139580\/although-it-fell-year-year-new-zealanders-were-still-charged-48-billion-interest\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">shows<\/a> that they totaled almost $400 bln as at June, 2026. Meanwhile mortgage interest paid in Q2-2026 was $4.8 bln, less than the $5.4 bln in Q2-2025. For the year to June, borrowers paid $19.8 bln, down from $22.6 bln in the prior equivalent year. This is the least since the end of 2024 and given that mortgage rates are rising again, it may be a turning point higher.<\/p>\n<p>SMALL DIP<br \/>At the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.globaldairytrade.info\/en\/gdt-pulse-results\/\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">overnight dairy Pulse auction<\/a>, prices achieved were a bit more than -1% lower than the prior week&#8217;s full auction in USD, but a bit less than that in NZD.<\/p>\n<p>SHIFTING TO THE MOUNTAINS<br \/>StatsNZ released some interesting population data about Otago today. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stats.govt.nz\/news\/otago-population-a-changing-landscape\/\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">They pointed out<\/a> that in 25 years Queenstown-Lakes and Central Otago districts will be home to 40% of the province&#8217;s population, nearly rivaling Dunedin. That will be a big shift from Dunedin&#8217;s current 52% and Queenstown&#8217;s 21%. And in turn that is a big shift the 64% who lived in Dunedin in 1996.<\/p>\n<p>NZX50 RISES<br \/>As at 3pm, the overall <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/investing\/139584\/here-are-key-changes-know-about-new-zealand-equity-market-nzx50-rises-serko-ebos\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">NZX50 index was up +1.0% today<\/a>, and up +1.7% for the past 5 trading sessions. It is up +4.8% from six months ago. From a year ago it is now up +8.2%. Market heavyweight F&amp;P Healthcare is up +2.2% so far today. Serko, EBOS, Vulcan Steel and F&amp;P Healthcare rally while Meridian, Briscoes, Contact and Port of Tauranga retreat<\/p>\n<p>A 22 YEAR RECORD<br \/>The RBNZ&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rbnz.govt.nz\/statistics\/series\/reserve-bank\/our-foreign-currency-assets-and-liabilities\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">foreign currency intervention capacity<\/a> rose more than +$1 bln in June from May, bolstered by them spending $572 mln to buy NZD. That $572 mln purchased was the most for any month since this disclosure started in 2004.<\/p>\n<p>TSB SALE OPPONENTS GETTING INDEPENDENT REPORT ON PROPOSED DEAL<br \/>The Taranaki Community Accountability Society Incorporated, established in June to protect the community&#8217;s interest in TSB Bank and ensure compliance with its shareholder the Toi Foundation&#8217;s Trust Deed, has hired Northington Partners to report on the proposed takeover of TSB by Heartland. On June 2, Heartland Group Holdings announced it had signed a deal with the Toi Foundation to buy TSB in a deal valued at $620 mln.<\/p>\n<p>SIMON UPTON CALLS FOR BETTER ENVIRONMENTAL DATA<br \/>Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton is calling for better data on the environment. <a href=\"https:\/\/pce.parliament.nz\/media\/cwingehl\/unlocking-new-zealand-s-environmental-information_july-2026_digital.pdf\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">In a new report<\/a> Upton says a\u00a0lack of accessible environmental information is impeding better environmental management and adding costs to the system. He says environmental information is collected in a\u00a0fragmented way\u00a0by a wide range of public and private organisations. Upton says he has been drawing attention to the &#8220;often-threadbare state of environmental information&#8221; for almost nine years, with almost every investigation he has undertaken hampered by a lack of reliable information. &#8220;It\u2019s hard to make judgements \u2013 or run your business \u2013 if you lack key facts,&#8221; Upton says.<\/p>\n<p>PRESSURE EASES<br \/>In Australia, June CPI inflation came in at 3.8%, and less than the 4.0% expected. It was kept up by the expiry of household energy support measures, but the falls in fuel costs more than offset that. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.com.au\/economy\/789\/although-housing-costs-rose-rebates-ended-overall-inflation-eased-40-may-38-june\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">More here<\/a>. Will this deter the RBA from moving their policy rate on August 11? It may do, but <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.com.au\/economy\/787\/rba-will-be-watching-inflation-expectations-ahead-their-august-11-review-latest-survey\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">inflation expectations<\/a> remain very high. Some analysts now expect a hawkish hold. The lower CPI has hit the AUD hard today, presumably because FX markets no longer see higher interest rates imminently.<\/p>\n<p>RISING CREDIT RISK<br \/>The global credit risk environment has evolved heading into 2H26 but continues to be driven by two main sources of short-term risk, <a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.roxhillmedia.com\/production\/email\/attachment\/1840001_1850000\/28e399c8519e4b7086633b30cd06d18415e23b52.pdf\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">according to Fitch Ratings<\/a>: rising vulnerability to an AI-related market correction and persistent geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East. This is on top of a broader context of slowing\u00a0US consumer momentum, high inflation risks stemming from the 2Q energy shock and\u00a0structural public finance pressures\u00a0limiting the ability to respond to risk events.<\/p>\n<p>SWAP RATES EASE<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/charts\/interest-rates\/swap-rates\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Wholesale swap rates<\/a> may have retreated somewhat today. Keep an eye on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/charts\/interest-rates\/swap-rates\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">our chart<\/a> below which will record the final positions closer to 5pm. The 90 day bank bill rate was up +1 bp at 2.92% on Tuesday. Today, the Australian 10 year bond yield is unchanged from yesterday at 5.02%. The China 10 year bond rate has held at 1.72%. The Japanese 10 year bond is also little-changed at 2.77% today. The NZ Government 10 year bond rate is now at 4.76%, and up 2 bps from this time yesterday. (The RBNZ data is now &#8216;prior day&#8217; with the Tuesday rate up +1 bp at 4.72%.) The UST 10yr yield is down another -4 bps at 4.63%.<\/p>\n<p>EQUITIES MIXED<br \/>The local equity market is slightly softer since 3pm &#8211; and now up +0.7%. Meanwhile, the ASX200 is has risen +1.0% liking the idea of their rates on hold. Tokyo has opened down another -1.1%. Hong Kong is up +1.6% but Shanghai is down -0.4% at its open today. Singapore is up +0.5% at its open. Wall Street was up a minor +0.2% in Tuesday trade on the S&amp;P500 with the Nasdaq down another -0.2%.<\/p>\n<p>OIL PRICES TURN UP<br \/>American oil prices have risen +US$2 on a flare-up in the Persian Gulf and from this time yesterday with the WTI benchmark is now just on US$82.50\/bbl, while the international Brent price is just on US$87.50\/bbl and up +US$1. Iran was annoyed Trump claimed talks were taking place when they weren&#8217;t, so they reinforced their point. Then the US and Saudi Arabia attacked Iran-linked forces in Iraq. And the Houthis attacked two Saudi tankers off Yemen. This mess isn&#8217;t going away.<\/p>\n<p>CARBON PRICE LITTLE-CHANGED<br \/>There have been very few trades so far again today and the price has dipped slightly to $55.50\/NZU. See our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/charts\/rural\/carbon-price\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">daily chart tracker<\/a> of the NZU price for carbon, courtesy of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.emstradepoint.co.nz\/\" rel=\" noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">emsTradepoint<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>GOLD SOFTISH<br \/>In early Asian trade, gold is down -US$18\/oz from this time yesterday, now at US$4027\/oz. Silver is now just on US$57.50\/oz and little-changed from yesterday.<\/p>\n<p>NZD FIRM, ESPECIALLY AGAINST THE AUD<br \/>The Kiwi dollar is +10 bps firmer against the USD from this time yesterday, now at just on 57.8 USc. Against the Aussie we are up +70 bps at 83.2 AUc. Against the euro we are unchanged at 50.7 euro cents. This all means the TWI-5 is now just over 61.7 and up +10 bps.<\/p>\n<p>BITCOIN FIRMISH<br \/>The bitcoin price is now at US$63,825 and up +1.0% from this time yesterday. Volatility has been low at just on +\/- 0.9%.<\/p>\n<p>Select chart tabs<\/p>\n<p>                          US$<br \/>\n                            AU$<br \/>\n                            TWI-5<br \/>\n                            \u00a5en<br \/>\n                            \u00a5uan<br \/>\n                            \u20acuro<br \/>\n                            GBP<br \/>\n                            Bitcoin<\/p>\n<p>Select chart tabs<\/p>\n<p>                          1 year %<br \/>\n                            2 years %<br \/>\n                            3 years %<br \/>\n                            4 years %<br \/>\n                            5 years %<br \/>\n                            7 years %<br \/>\n                            10 years %<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/rural-news\/soil-moisture-animation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><br \/>\n    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/soil-moisture-2026-07-15.gif\" title=\"click to go to animation page\"\/><\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>This soil moisture chart is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/rural-news\/soil-moisture-animation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">animated here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Keep abreast of upcoming events by following our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.interest.co.nz\/economic-calendar\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Economic Calendar here \u00bb<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Here are the key things you need to know before you leave work today (or if you work&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10971,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[64,63,8878,5471,12972,99,12970,164,1697,12973,12969,12971],"class_list":["post-831175","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-banking","tag-bonds","tag-borrowing","tag-business","tag-currencies","tag-economy","tag-nz","tag-saving","tag-term-deposits","tag-twi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/831175","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=831175"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/831175\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=831175"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=831175"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=831175"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}