Business confidence in New Zealand fell in March but still retains an optimistic tone, the latest survey from the the National Bank of New Zealand showed on Wednesday.
A net 43% of firms participating in the poll are expecting better times ahead, the survey showed, down 7 percentage points from February. Firms' own activity expectations nudged down 3 percentage points to 39%.
A net 19% of businesses expect higher profits over the year ahead, while employment intentions were broadly unchanged, with a net 9% expecting to hire staff in the year ahead.
Confidence was down across all sectors, bar retailing, reversing last month's trend where retailing dipped, and confidence across the remaining sectors increased.
The NBNZ business outlook survey polls 1,500 business across New Zealand to give an idea of where the economy is headed in the next 12 months.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.