It's no surprise that business confidence has dipped again and remains firmly entrenched in pessimistic territory, National Finance spokesperson Bill English said today.

"Businesses and families are taking a hammering as costs rise and the low dollar erodes New Zealanders' real wealth. And there's no sign at all that the Government is taking notice of peoples' worries

"The continued pessimism is costing growth and jobs. We have already seen 10,000 jobs lost in the last six months, and there are widespread market expectations of a fall in GDP when June quarter data is released on Friday.

"Expectations are that the economy may be starting to recover, but with both business and consumer confidence negative, any pick-up in growth will remain well below the economy's potential.

"Pricing expectations are a major concern in the National Bank survey. A net 44% of businesses expect to raise prices in the next year. This includes a net 70% of businesses in the retail sector.

"Trends like that show that the pressure on household budgets from higher prices is really only beginning.

"New Zealanders are paying for the Government's bad policies. Dr Cullen doesn't even want to know about that, let alone do anything to solve the problem," Mr English said.

Ends

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