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).

MORTGAGE RATE CHANGES
As we publish this, only CFML has cut rates so far. SBS Bank cut its fixed rates today, but not its floating rate yet. As we publish, no bank has announced a floating rate cut yet. All rates are here. And note, you can compare mortgage offers with our new calculator that takes into account other costs and cashback incentives, here.

TERM DEPOSIT/SAVINGS RATE CHANGES
First there was BNZ, then Kiwibank has cut most of its TD rates today before the OCR announcement. Heartland and AMP have cut too, as has SBS Bank. All updated term deposit rates less than 1 year are here, for 1-5 years, they are here.

DOUBLE DIP
The RBNZ has cut the OCR by -50 bps to 2.50%. More here. It was last at that level in July 2022 – and January 2016.

ACTIVE BY BUYING CHEAPER
Investors’ share of residential property sales is increasing compared to last year but they are paying slightly less for the properties they buy.

BUT RENTS SLIP TOO
But there is bad news for landlords with rental stock levels up, asking rents coming down. The number of residential properties available to rent is up +24% compared to a year ago, with the average asking rent down -$20 a week.

ASB GETTING NEW CFO AS CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER LEAVES
ASB’s Chief Financial Officer Carl Ferguson is shifting to parent Commonwealth Bank of Australia to be Group Chief Internal Auditor from November 10. Andrew MacVicar, currently CFO of Operations at CBA, will be ASB’s new CFO. ASB Chief Operating Officer Amie Nilsson will leave on December 19 with a search for her successor to come.

DAIRY PRICES DIP IN USD, SAVED BY WEAK NZD
The overnight dairy auction brought slightly easing prices, although not be as much as the derivatives market had signaled. In the end prices fell -1.6% in USD terms, but in NZD terms they were actually up +1.5% as the value of our currency is weaker.

ENVIRONMENTAL UPDATE
StatsNZ has released Our Marine Environment 2025. It is the latest in a series of environmental reports produced by the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ under the Environmental Reporting Act 2015. It is the fourth report dedicated to the marine environment, following the 2016, 2019, and 2022 reports. Details here.

NZX50 RISES MODESTLY
As at 3pm, the overall NZX50 index was up +0.3% net in its Tuesday session so far. It is up +1.8% over the past five working days. And it is up +3.5% year-to-date. From a year ago it is now up +7.4%. Market heavyweight F&P Healthcare is down -1.1% today so far. Kathmandu, Oceania, Property for Industry, and Summerset lead gainers, Gentrack, Vital Healthcare, and Tourism Holdings lead the decliners.

ELECTRICITY AUTHORITY EYES SOLAR INCREASE
The Electricity Authority says it wants to remove barriers so more electricity from small-scale solar, wind and solar farms, and other distributed generation can power the country. It says we need to maximise the value of these clean, cheap and localised energy sources to strengthen the electricity system, boost resilience in communities, and lower costs. It’s seeking feedback on a consultation paper.

SWAP RATES DROP
Wholesale swap rates are will be notably lower today for all durations. Immediately after the big OCR cut the one year rate was down -7 bps. Keep an eye on our chart below which will record the final positions closer to 5pm. The 90 day bank bill rate was down -1 bp on Tuesday at 2.73%. Today, the Australian 10 year bond yield is down -4 bps from yesterday at 4.37%. The China 10 year bond rate is unchanged at 1.88%. The NZ Government 10 year bond rate is down -4 bps at 4.21%. The RBNZ data is now all delayed with Monday’s rate up +2 bps to 4.23%. The UST 10yr yield is down -3 bps at 4.13%.

EQUITIES MIXED
The local equity market is now up +0.7% in Wednesday trade so far, all after the OCR cut. The ASX200 is down -0.1% in afternoon trade. Tokyo has opened up another +0.1%. Hong Kong is down -1.6% at its open and of course Shanghai is still on its holiday break. Singapore is down -0.5% at its open. Wall Street ended its Tuesday session down -0.4% on the S&P500.

OIL UP IN MINOR MOVE
The oil price in the US is up 50 USc from yesterday at this time at just over US$62/bbl and the international Brent price is still just under US$66/bbl.

CARBON PRICE DIPS
There have been some small trades today but the price has slipped -$1 to $55.50/NZU which is its lowest since July. The next official carbon auction is on December 3, 2025 and likely heading for another failure. See our daily chart tracker of the NZU price for carbon, courtesy of emsTradepoint.

GOLD BREAKS THROUGH
In early Asian trade, gold is up +US$47 from yesterday, now at US$4005/oz and is on the move. Silver is back over US$48/ox.

NZD DROPS HARD
The Kiwi dollar is dropped sharply after the OCR cut, now down -80 bps from yesterday to 57.5 USc. Against the Aussie we are down -60 bps at 87.6 AUc. Against the euro we are down -40 bps at 49.5 euro cents. This all means the TWI-5 is down -50 bps at just over 65.1.

BITCOIN LOWER
The bitcoin price is now at US$121,981 and down -2.1% from this time yesterday. Volatility has again been modest, just on +/- 1.8%.

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This soil moisture chart is animated here.

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