The final ANZ business survey for the...>

NEW ZEALAND: The final ANZ business survey for the month of May notes that "the

full-month May ANZ Business Outlook Survey showed small further lifts in most

indicators versus the preliminary results as the country continued to make good

progress on beating back COVID-19 and loosening restrictions on economic

activity. However, the levels of the indicators remain pretty bleak. While the

outright disruption is easing, the recession is just getting started. About two

thirds of responses were included in our preliminary release on 11 May. The

first sample group scored -46% for business confidence; the second sample

reported -32%. Similarly, a net 42% of firms who responded early in the month

expected weaker activity ahead for their own firm; a net 30% of the later sample

did. It's not as gruesome as it was, but it's hardly happy days out there. To

put it in context, expected own activity would need to rise another 17 points

just to reach its lows from the 2009 recession...Inflation expectations were

unchanged at 1.3%, sitting near the bottom of the RBNZ's 1-3% CPI target range."