Remember where you heard it first. (Which I admit may not have been here). The recovery is on the way.
Economic, that is. “Texas T,” if you’re old enough to get that Beverly Hillbillies reference, and to realise that Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee understands you only get rich fast once, but why not now with the minerals that New Zealand clearly possesses? Let the hard work follow.
Every other country is doing the same thing to the extent they can and, climate change be damned, why should New Zealand be holier than thou?
Greece’s financial crisis be damned, too. Europe is the old world and we in New Zealand got locked out of that world 30-plus years ago thanks to EU protectionism.
New Zealand makes food, and the rich world that we’re not part of is committed to protecting its farmers. We are locked out.
We shouldn’t target European markets for high-grade dairy products – we already know they won’t take our camembert.
So let’s value what’s high-value to people who don’t have much money – yet - the world we’re close to: Asia, South America, and southern Africa. Throw in the obsessively cheese-eating Arab world for good measure and pray for peace and prosperity in Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan.
Hundreds of millions of increasingly wealthy Arabs, Sri Lankans, Vietnamese, Chinese, Nigerians and others are partial to a spot of nice kiwi cheese – and the rest of the excellent food we make – with not an import barrier in sight. As they get richer, which they will, we will make more of it. So who’s complaining?
This is the new New Zealand opportunity.
Born of the global financial crisis and the unexpectedly swift fall of the motherland UK, Europe, Japan and the US as the arbiters of global direction, in favour of the “global south,” New Zealand qualifies.
That’s why Trade Minister Tim Groser gets invitations to Beijing that the Aussies would die for.
Meanwhile, our banks are sound. Our most important markets are, if anything, over-heated. Both Australia and China have kept New Zealand afloat during the GFC and both are showing signs of slowing, albeit for different reasons.
Australia has put the brakes on with its super-tax on minerals, which might just be one way of discouraging China from investing in Australia, while China just needs to slow down, and knows it.
These are not so much long-term negatives as pauses in the long-term growth trend, to which New Zealand is close by.
(BusinessWire)
Great article. I think by the way, that it’s “Texas Tea”, as in the drink. Not that it really matters.
no, it was texas tequila if my memry serve me rifgt