WELLINGTON – New Zealand’s business confidence continued to worsen in the second quarter of this year as companies grappled with increased costs and higher interest rates, a private think tank said on Tuesday.
A net 65% of firms surveyed expected general business conditions to deteriorate compared with 40% pessimism in the previous quarter, the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research’s (NZIER) quarterly survey of business opinion (QSBO) showed.
It added that business confidence is now at its lowest level since the first quarter of 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic was declared.
(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Josie Kao)
