Morning Edition: 22 May 2025

The Morning Edition of News Fix for 22 May 2025, straight from the Newstalk ZB newsroom - bringing you everything you need to know in news, politics, business, entertainment and sport.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:05):
Good morning. I'm Neva ready Manu, and this is your
morning news fix for Thursday, twenty second of May. In
this update, budget day has arrived. Finance Minister Nikola Willis
will unveil her second budget at two pm this afternoon
after weeks of hinting wants. Inside Political editor Jason Wall
says more.

Speaker 2 (00:25):
Willis has officially dubbed it the Growth Budget, while unofficially
calling it the Nobs Budget. But she says what it
will not be is a high spending budget and the
government won't be throwing money at what she's described as
rainbow and Unicorn initiatives.

Speaker 1 (00:42):
Farmers still aren't creaming it, despite a billion dollar monthly
trade surplus for the first time in five years. Stats
Z data reveals it sat on one point four billion
dollars in April, compared with a twelve million dollar deficit
for the same time last year. The dairy sector has
been the big winner. Federated Farmers Dairy chairperson Richard McIntyre

(01:03):
told Ryan Bridge, milk prices continue to rise. We are
doing a rise at the moment, but our costs have
brought up so much over the last few years that
you're a all reality, all we're doing is making a
reasonable margin and business inflation expectations arising. The Reserve Bank's
first ever survey of this kind found average one year
ahead annual inflation predictions increased from two point twenty five

(01:26):
to two point four four percent. For two years ahead
expectations increased two point four seven to two point five
four percent. Both remain below the Reserve Banks three percent
target for inflation. ASP Chief economist Nick Toughley says it's
not a welcome trend. Does the expectations creep up a
businesses in New Zealand that all concerned that there may

(01:46):
be some inflational impacts from the tariff war that's underway.

Speaker 2 (01:50):
At the moment.

Speaker 1 (01:51):
Zespriys sold a record volume of kiwi fruit this season,
topping five billion dollars worth. The queb Fruit Marketer sold
two hundred and twenty point nine nine million trays and
increase from one hundred and sixty four point two million
last season. The sales also follow a record harvest, and
direct returns for growers also reached more than three billion
dollars for the first time. Another tens exchange with the

(02:14):
world leader at the White House, President Donald Trump has
met with South African counterpart Cyril Ramaposa. Before a contentious
media event at the Oval Office, Trump alleged white farmers
of fleeing South Africa with thousands being massacred. Ramaposa denied
they're being persecuted before Trump held up images of news stories.
Ramaposa says it's not government policy and responded with a

(02:37):
jab at Trump recently accepting a plane from Cutter.

Speaker 2 (02:39):
After viewing a thing where thousands of people as dead.
I'm sorry, I don't have a plane to give you.

Speaker 1 (02:48):
In sport, olympians Eric Affair, Weather, Eve Thomas and Caitlin
Deans have each swum under the eight hundred meter qualification
time for the World Championships in Singapore across July and August.
Mitchell Santana has returned figures of three for eleven from
four overs for hosts Mumbai in their fifty nine run
Indian Premier League Cricket win against Delhi, qualifying them for

(03:10):
the semi finals. Dmir Dokich, the estranged father of former
Australian tennis player Yelena, has died. I'm never retty, Manu,
and that your latest news fix. We'll be back with
the next update at midday from the news talks he'd
b newsroom