Mike Hosking

1 week ago | newstalkzb.co.nz | Mike Hosking

Now, perhaps the most startling thing of the news yesterday that our old mates at the state radio broadcaster have opened a voluntary redundancy programme, is that they've never done that before.  100 years they've been doing the business at Radio New Zealand. 100 years, never had a voluntary redundancy. Tells you something about how insulated the real world from the real world they are.  Mind you, I don't even know that's true actually, because Radio New Zealand used to be a whole different beast.

1 week ago | newstalkzb.co.nz | Mike Hosking

Right, let's deal to the economy. There were two interesting things yesterday. The first was the food price inflation number showed it is not contained. Why it is increasing beyond broad inflation is a many and varied thing, and the upside of these numbers is we can control them to a degree. You don’t have to buy chocolate, given cocoa is through the roof. You don’t have to buy butter, or a lot of dairy. Vegetables are up, but that is seasonal.

1 week ago | newstalkzb.co.nz | Mike Hosking

Last week when Shaun Johnson was in the studio, we were discussing retirement. Not mine, but that’s of growing fascination to me these days. When do you know? If you aren't getting cancelled, or run out of town, or falling apart, how do you know? John Key famously had nothing left in the tank. Johnson was explaining it was important for him to go out when he decided, not when he was dropped. The TV stuff he now does was something he was interested in, but didn’t know how it would unfold.

1 week ago | newstalkzb.co.nz | Mike Hosking

As much as we tried to celebrate last week's excellent economic numbers regarding the food and fibre, the bullishness of Fieldays, the boost in elective surgery and the boom in teacher numbers, what you can't ignore is the manufacturing read for April. It hit a brick wall. It fell over six points and is below the 50 point expansionary mark.

2 weeks ago | newstalkzb.co.nz | Mike Hosking

It's hardly a surprise, is it? Adrian looks at what Nicola is offering to run the place, packs a sad, and is off. It’s a pathetic end to a tumultuous period in which we, the people who paid him, deserved an awful lot better. The fact this information on the Orr resignation had to be dragged out of the bank by way of the Official Information Act, the rules of which were ignored as the bank failed to meet deadlines, shows you just what sort of place we are dealing with.