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The 2026 edition of the Mood of the CFO survey shows continued confidence from New Zealand finance leaders for company performance over the next year, despite further global economic uncertainty and more challenging operating conditions.

Key findings from the third annual Hunter Campbell Mood of the CFO Survey shows continued confidence from New Zealand finance leaders for company performance over the next year, despite further global economic uncertainty and more challenging operating conditions.

Financial markets have gone on a bit of a tear recently, shifting from one extreme to the other and now seeing interest rate hikes coming sooner and stronger than either the Reserve Bank’s or economists’ expectations.

New Zealand’s rarest stamp, the upside-down Lake Taupō, has changed hands again, but its modest long-term return highlights how investment performance can vary widely. As our Chart of the Month shows, some assets have delivered far stronger growth over the same period, even after accounting for inflation.

Inflation data for the September quarter was released earlier this week, showing an increase in the annual inflation rate from 2.7% to 3.0%. Inflation is now sitting at the top of the Reserve Bank’s 1-3%pa target band.

The Reserve Bank’s August Monetary Policy Statement (MPS) included a shift in where the official cash rate (OCR) is expected to trough, with the Bank’s OCR projections now bottoming out at 2.55% in March 2026.

Key findings from the second annual Hunter Campbell Mood of the CFO Survey shows improved confidence among New Zealand finance leaders for company performance in the year ahead, although the level of uncertainty in the economy is heightened, and the vast majority of finance leaders expect to battle ongoing economic challenges.

There has been endless news on the current unprecedented trade war between the US and the rest of the world. The effects on US consumers and the US economy should not be understated, and forecasts incorporating current policy paint a depressing outlook for the US.

The fallout from the trade war has stolen headlines over the past week, as Kiwis worry about their plummeting KiwiSaver balances amid the global share market selloff. One of the key questions that always emerges from a major global economic event is “what does this mean for interest rates?”

The verdict is in for the Reserve Bank: the weight of evidence against it from economists, financial markets, businesses, and broader public opinion left the Bank with little choice but to retract its May Monetary Policy Statement and effectively plead guilty to previously misreading the economy.