Media Release 11 April 2008.

We are all together now.

The New Zealand Manufacturers and Exporters Association (NZMEA), says that comments from the Canterbury Employers Chamber of Commerce (CECC) on Radio New Zealand on Thursday that businesses are “under siege” shows that there are fundamental problems in the New Zealand economy.

“Manufacturers and exporters have been ‘under siege’ for over the past three or four years as the result of ineffective monetary policy that creates an overvalued exchange rate and treats that problem as collateral damage in the fight against domestic inflation. The domestic non-tradable economy is now feeling the same pain and at last, there is agreement that all our economy maybe in trouble”, says Chief Executive John Walley,

“New Zealand cannot build long term economic growth when the tradable sector is under such enormous and unnecessary pressure. The current settings are unsustainable, so there had to come a point when the economy as a whole reacted and this is now happening”.

The Association is calling on those closely associated with the domestic and non-tradable economy to push for those changes necessary to deliver one functioning economy, as opposed to one economy that crashes and burns.

“It is clear what the problems are, but what matters more is finding solutions to deal with them on a structural basis, instead of waiting for yet another swing in the business cycle. A good deal of past and current suffering is self inflicted, and a number of our losses may well be permanent. Each time through these damaging cycles, we lose more of our trading base”.

“There needs to be action to stop efforts aimed at controlling inflation being reflected in the exchange rates. We need one economy”.

“We have to find a better way”.

NZMEA – the authentic and independent voice for manufacturers and exporters.

For further comment contact John Walley, 03 353 2545, 021 809 631.

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