New Zealand business confidence falls in April amid tariff concerns

[SYDNEY] New Zealand’s business confidence slumped in April with most forward-looking activity indicators weighed down by concerns US President Donald Trump’s tariff plans will impact economic growth, an ANZ Bank survey showed on Wednesday.

The survey’s headline measure fell 9 points, with a net 49.3 per cent of respondents expecting the economy to improve over the year ahead, versus a 57.5 per cent optimism level in March.

A net 47.7 per cent of respondents expected their own businesses to grow in the next 12 months, versus 48.6 per cent last month.

“The data does support the idea that the turmoil has had a marked negative impact on most forward-looking indicators, and particularly on headline business confidence and businesses’ plans to invest. Time will tell whether the impact is lasting,” ANZ chief economist Sharon Zollner said in a statement. REUTERS