If you are of pessimistic nature there are plenty of things you can fixate on this year. Tensions in Ukraine and the China Seas, the coming Omicron wave, developing country debt, high inflation and the risk of quite high interest rates, shortages of labour and materials, the government’s credit crunch, etc. But there are plenty of positive factors in play which will keep our economic growth rate firm this year and I run through them this week. Enjoy and many thanks to the over 450 people who sent in their household cost-saving ideas this week.

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This week’s issue of Tony’s View can be accessed here.
tonyalexander.nz/resources/Tony’s View 20 January 2022.pdf

If your email system does not click through, just download directly from the Publications page of my website www.tonyalexander.nz

In Tview Premium this week I also have these items.

• Listings of properties for sale are finally trending up and a lot more are set to hit the market. I run through the key numbers including at the regional level.
• As stated from before mid-2021, we’ve entered the endgame for the housing boom and now we can officially see the boom is in fact over. I look at the 1% fall in NZ house prices in December plus regional data on prices and sales.
• In responses to my living costs survey many people suggested investing in assets other than bank accounts. I discuss this issue.
• In my regular section on Local House Price Momentum I look at local government areas from Waikato District to Whakatane, showing how far away from trend prices have become.
• The Interest Rates section includes deeper discussion of the factors in play, emphasising the upside risk for borrowing costs and showing interest rate and bank margin movements on fixed rate lending over the past few years. The margin graphs show why another round of increases in fixed mortgage rates is imminent.