N.Z.'s English Signals Immigration Change, Sees Trump Trade Risk
- Businesses clambering for skilled migrants to fill new jobs
- New Zealand economy one of developed world’s best performing
Bill English.
Photographer: Brendon O'Hagan/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
New Zealand Prime Minister Bill English signaled he might adjust the nation’s immigration program and joined the global chorus of concern about the risk to trade from the Trump administration as he gears up for a September election.
English, who took over as prime minister in December, has the tailwind of one of the best performing economies in the developed world and a budget in surplus that could allow him to offer tax cuts. But there are challenges: a housing boom is locking many first-home buyers out of the market and saddling others with huge debts. In the biggest city, Auckland, the average house price is now more than NZ$1 million ($703,000).