One Wellington property developer is calling on the Reserve Bank to make it easier to repurpose vacant commercial buildings.

Alex Cassels has set up several new apartment buildings in Wellington - and is looking to expand to Auckland.

He explained how this scheme would alleviate the housing crisis and provide affordable rents.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New inflation data out of the US has experts speculating potential rate cuts in the coming months.

The Federal Reserve is set to meet on Thursday - and it's likely they'll offer an update about when rate cuts will come.

Harbour Asset Management's Shane Solly explains further.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An Auckland plant-based café is beefing up its menu, hoping to increase customers and reduce production costs.

Kind Café says the cost of living has forced the change.

Owner Cathie Cottle says they're hoping it'll be temporary - and the café will be able to later return to its principles.

She says vegetarian options tend to be more expensive than meat.

"Our chefs had to go to a lot of effort to make our own courses, there's a whole lot of things that cannot just be bought as easily."

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New technology using AI and lasers is helping growers to safely tackle weeds without resorting to harmful chemicals.

Map and Zap detects weeds and kills them with a laser - leaving no chemical residue in the soil and not releasing additional carbon.

AgResearch expert Dr Kioumars Ghamkhar says the trials have been successful so far.

"In vineyards, you don't kill all weeds. You want to keep clover, for instance, because it fixes nitrogen and it's good for the soil. That gave us the option to kill other weeds... but clovers were kept alive."

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand's share market is taking a turn for the better.

New data indicates the NZX 50 has gone up by almost 6 percent in the past month - and economists are feeling optimistic about this reporting season.

NZ Herald business editor at large Liam Dann explains this change in direction.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government has dropped further hints it isn’t opposed to diluting its 100% ownership of Kiwibank to enable it to grow.

While Kiwibank is expanding, it needs a lot more capital to be the disrupter it was set up to be to challenge the big four Australian-owned banks.

NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny speculates about the Government's next steps.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New data indicates the financial pressures are easing on renters.

Rental prices have decreased for the first time since 2022, according to Trade Me’s Rental Price Index for June 2024.

CoreLogic chief property economist Kelvin Davidson says this is a sign the rental market has shifted in favour of tenants.

"There's a bit less demand out there and a bit more supply - so we have seen rents slow. They may not necessarily fall over the longer term, but I'd say they've flattened out."

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Waikato-based sheep milk company has managed to gain brand registration for its infant milk formula in China.

Spring Sheep will be able to directly import and distribute infant formula to China - and increase export volumes long-term.

The Country's Jamie Mackay explains the significance of this deal.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.