Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

ASB has today increased its fixed home loan rates across 12-month to 4-year terms by between 6 and 16 basis points, and it’s 5-year term by 20 basis points. To support savers, ASB has also lifted term deposit rates by between 5 and 20 basis points across 12-month to 4-year terms.

ASB’s Executive General Manager Personal Banking Adam Boyd says “Global financial markets have been volatile, and ongoing geopolitical tensions have driven sustained increases in wholesale interest rates. These rates underpin lending and deposit pricing in New Zealand and reflect broader trends across international markets as economies navigate the current outlook.”

“We encourage any homeowners feeling uncertain about their position to get in touch. There is real value in talking through your options and ensuring your lending structure is working for your circumstances.”

Rate Table 

ASB has practical information for customers on the current interest rate environment available on its website as well as support to help customers take control of their financial wellbeing and achieve their goals at its Financial Wellbeing Hub. 

Over $500m will be invested in expanding the South Island’s food, manufacturing and construction supply chain infrastructure over the next five years.

The investment in Christchurch’s Hornby Quadrant comes as the precinct is integrated into a new $5.5 billion, 860-hectare regional manufacturing and export logistics network designed to connect Canterbury with the country’s largest inland port and the largest industrial development, which are planned for Otago and Southland.

The move is set to create hundreds of new jobs and comes as Christchurch faces a commercial land shortage, which has seen prices double to almost $500 per square metre over the past five years – a trend experts say will constrain future large-scale investment in the region.

With over 150 hectares of industrial land, Hornby Quadrant is one of the largest industrial business parks in New Zealand. Despite only half of the precinct being built out, the development acts as a distribution hub for a significant proportion of the South Island’s consumer food products and building materials.

A newly created 30-hectare fourth stage of the development will see national property and construction firm Calder Stewart support Mainland Group (formerly part of Fonterra’s consumer brands business), United Steel and other large-scale operators in establishing manufacturing and distribution facilities to expand the region's supply chain. The fourth stage of Hornby Quadrant will have a completed value of over half a billion dollars once fully developed.

In addition to developing and owning the land, the company utilises its vertically integrated property, construction and manufacturing business units to convert the greenfield sites into projects for tenants and owner-occupiers.

The entire precinct will be valued at over $3 billion once complete and is already home to major FMCG and distribution firms including; Foodstuffs South Island’s distribution centre, six Fletcher Building subsidiaries, Sleepyhead, Penske, OJI Fibre Solutions, My Food Bag and Dairyworks, which distributes around 80% of the country’s cheese through its chilled warehouse.

The development is the last remaining land area in Christchurch where 40,000 sqm-plus facilities can be designed and developed for occupiers, with both purchase and lease options available. Industry experts believe the lack of land supply will deter businesses looking to consolidate their distribution centres to achieve greater economies of scale.

Once fully developed, Hornby Quadrant is expected to employ thousands of people across various industries with the potential to generate 70MW of renewable energy via rooftop solar, enough to power 9,350 homes.

Ben Stewart, Calder Stewart’s director of property, says that despite Canterbury’s seemingly abundant land, much of it is unzoned, lacks essential infrastructure, or is too far from key transport links, making it unsuitable for large-scale development.

He says the growing use of automated warehousing technologies is creating a trend toward greater consolidation among industrial operators which allows businesses to centralise operations, reduce overhead costs and improve supply chain efficiency by leveraging larger, more advanced facilities.

“We know that rapid advancements in automated search and retrieval technologies are incentivising companies to look for locations that can support the establishment of much larger and intensified operations.

“At the same time, Christchurch is facing a land supply constraint similar to Auckland. While we have the ability to expand westward, much of the available land is not zoned or serviced, limiting options for businesses needing large industrial footprints,” he says.

Stewart says to help address this issue, the company has spent nearly two decades progressively rezoning rural land in Hornby.

He says zoning certainty and infrastructure investment are crucial to ensuring Christchurch remains a competitive destination for logistics, manufacturing and distribution businesses.

“Hornby Quadrant offers large contiguous land parcels, providing businesses with the flexibility to consolidate or expand depending on their operational requirement.

“There are limited options readily available for occupiers wanting to follow the current trend of consolidation and this shortage has the potential to limit economic growth, drive up land prices even further, and force businesses to look outside Christchurch for suitable locations.

“Without well-planned industrial developments, companies requiring large-scale facilities may struggle to expand or consolidate operations, which could impact supply chain efficiency and job creation in the region,” he says.

Sam Stewart, Calder Stewart director, says they are seeing growing interest from global brands that recognise Christchurch as New Zealand’s second largest industrial area and as a distribution gateway to the South Island. He says these businesses want connectivity, workforce availability and certainty around zoning.

“Given its proximity to the port, airport, and major motorways, the development has attracted strong interest from both local and international firms.

“Our ability to provide large, well-located industrial sites and design-build solutions gives businesses long-term security in an increasingly competitive market.

“We are in discussions with key international freight and distribution companies interested in establishing or expanding their South Island presence. Most of these businesses are household names, and having an operational presence in Christchurch is crucial for their wider business strategy.

“With approximately 80 hectares of land remaining, our projections show Hornby Quadrant will be fully developed within the next decade.

“As New Zealand’s largest industrial landowner and developer, we are committed to ensuring Hornby Quadrant remains a high-quality, well-planned industrial precinct which supports sustainable economic growth and employment for decades to come,” he says.

University of Auckland research has helped inform a change in blood-donation policy.

TUESDAY 28 APRIL: Population health researchers are excited to have helped inform a policy change by the New Zealand Blood Service (NZBS).

From 4 May, every blood donor will be asked the same questions about their sexual history, whereas previously, men who have sex with men were excluded (deferred) if they had oral or anal intercourse with another man in the previous three months.

“This is a much fairer system, because no longer will men be singled-out and asked sexuality-based questions about whether they’ve had sex with another man,” says researcher Tony Sriamporn in the School of Population Health at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland.

This blanket ban meant men with low or no risk of HIV, such as men in monogamous same-sex relationships, were not allowed to donate.

In 2022, the Sex and Prevention of Transmission Study (SPOTS) recruited 3,253 gay and bisexual men, collected blood samples, and asked them about their HIV prevention behaviours and experience with blood donation.

SPOTS data showed that four out of five gay and bisexual men in New Zealand wanted to donate blood if the rules were changed and they were allowed to donate.

Importantly, the study found no participants with confirmed undiagnosed HIV.

“We knew the New Zealand Blood Service wanted to modernise but lacked New Zealand evidence to strengthen their case. Therefore, we are delighted that SPOTS participants have helped improve New Zealand’s blood donor policy,” says Sriamporn.

The University’s SPOTS study found a policy like the one just announced could triple the number of eligible gay and bisexual men donors from 13 percent to 41 percent or around 5,200 to 16,400 men.

“It’s a win for everyone as we always need more donors,” Sraimporn says. “We saw how recent events like Cyclone Vainau can disrupt collection services and quickly leave us short of blood.
New Zealand Blood Service chief medical officer Dr Sarah Morley says the organisation has long been committed to moving towards a behaviour-based approach when screening potential blood and plasma donors.

“The findings from the SPOTS research provided valuable New Zealand-specific evidence that strengthened the growing international evidence base,” Morley says.

“Together, this enabled our clinical team to complete a detailed review and risk assessment, confirming that introducing behaviour-based screening would not compromise the safety and quality of the blood we supply to patients.

“We’re looking forward to implementing these changes and to adopting a fairer, more consistent approach to assessing donor eligibility.”

Liz Gibbs, chief executive of The Burnett Foundation, also welcomes the move.

“We welcome this as an important step forward towards more equitable, behaviour-based donor screening,” Gibbs says.

“It reflects years of advocacy and the growing recognition that policy must evolve alongside science and community understanding.”

Associate Professor Peter Saxton from the University of Auckland’s School of Population Health says, “Sriamporn’s internationally recognised and published doctoral research offers insights into how an entire population could be introduced into the blood donor pool.

“It’s not every day that an entire population become eligible to donate blood. However, care must be taken in the next few steps to convert those good intentions into presenting for blood donation,” Saxton says.

“While many participants spoke about altruism, doing their civic duty, helping others, a significant minority felt alienated by the previous policy, and weren’t sure whether they would donate,” Saxton says.

“The challenge will be for the blood service rebuild relationships with the gay community, because this will ensure more eligible gay and bisexual men come forward.”

“This is wonderful news for the Rainbow community,” says Sriamporn, but noted that some members will remain frustrated.

“Future research could explore whether people taking pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), preventive HIV medication, could safely donate plasma in NZ,” says Sriamporn.

Australia has introduced a ‘plasma pathway’, which has enabled a wider group of donors to donate plasma, including people who use PrEP.

“We’ll also be closely watching the recent rollout in Australia for how its ‘Plasma Pathway’, which does just that, performs in practice.” Find out more.

Nonetheless, the team supports cautious and safe introduction of a fairer and consistent behaviour-based sexual activity screening approach for all donors.

The Sex and Prevention of Transmission Study (SPOTS) has been led by Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland in partnership with the University of Otago and community organisations Burnett Foundation Aotearoa, Body Positive Inc, Te Whāriki Takapou and the NZ Blood Service.

The SPOTS study was funded by the Health Research Council of NZ and the Ministry of Health.

Microplastics are having toxic effects on tiny creatures on the seafloor – and the ripple effect could throw the marine environment out of balance, says University of Auckland research fellow Dr Yuxi You.

Her recent research shows a bamboo worm – Macroclymenella stewartensis – is less active and less able to mix sediment in the seabed when exposed to high levels of microplastics.

“When you go to the estuary, you might not see these tiny animals that live beneath the sediment, but you might notice the casting mounds they leave on the mudflats.

“Despite being well hidden, these creatures are vital for the functioning of the ecosystem.

“They help keep our coastal waters clean and able to support marine life,” says You, from the University’s Institute of Marine Science and Centre for Climate, Biodiversity and Society.

When healthy, the bamboo worm and other tiny creatures burrow in the seafloor, allowing oxygenated water to enter deeper into the sediment. This breathes life into the seabed.

The tiny worms eat organic matter, which regulates the levels of carbon and nitrogen in the sediment and surrounding waters.

When the worms deposit small piles of poo on the seabed, this provides nutrients for microscopic plants that live on the sediments and fuels coastal food webs, says You.

“If microplastics stop creatures on the seafloor performing their vital role of keeping the ecosystem in balance, the risk of algal blooms increases.

“Algal blooms can cause the marine environment to become anoxic, and in an environment with no oxygen, fish and other marine life can’t survive,” she says.

University of Auckland Marine Science Professor Simon Thrush, who supervised You’s research, says healthy marine sediments store carbon, acting as a buffer against climate change.

However, when sediments become unbalanced, they can release greenhouse gases, such as nitrous oxide and methane.

Tiny creatures that help keep the seabed healthy are therefore important for the health of the planet, he says.

“Microplastics are affecting the organisms that live in sediment and they’re part of our biodiversity.

“These organisms are hidden heroes that do a lot for us,” says Thrush.

While You’s study at Leigh Marine Laboratory north of Auckland showed the bamboo worms were less active when exposed to microplastics, it isn’t yet clear why.

It’s possible the worms eat plastic particles, absorb chemicals from plastics that leach into sediment, or have less food available because microplastics reduce the growth of the algae they feed on, she says.

Seabirds and eagle rays feed on worms and other tiny creatures in the seabed, so the harmful effects of microplastics can pass up the food chain, says You.

Thrush says the most common source of microplastics is vehicle tyres, while other major sources include polypropylene and polyester fibres from clothing, and polyethylene from plastic bottles and plastic bags.

People can help tackle the microplastic problem by reducing the amount of plastic they buy, picking up plastic rubbish on the beach, supporting harbour clean up groups, and buying clothing made of natural fibres, he says.

While the amount of plastics pouring into the marine environment has increased, recent research shows some microplastics degrade in sediments over time, he says.

Currently, there are no limits set for safe levels of microplastic pollution in New Zealand – and policies will be needed to manage the problem, Thrush says.

Clean coasts are “precious” to New Zealand communities, says You.

“We benefit from nature, so we need to protect it.

“Most people don’t think about small animals living in the seafloor, but they’re of equal importance to larger animals, such as dolphins and penguins, when it comes to keeping ecosystems healthy,” she says.