Veteran financial journalist Bernard Hickey has used a recent dip in car sales to highlight some of the broader economic challenges facing the government.
Speaking to financial services industry leaders at the Financial Services Federation’s annual conference in Auckland on Wednesday, Hickey told the audience peoples’ ability to purchase a car says a lot about how the economy is performing.
“Car sales have been hitting record highs for nearly eight or nine years. Things are starting to cool a bit, but I wouldn’t call it a collapse.
“This is a story about the New Zealand economy. There are some huge challenges coming up for the government.”
Hickey says there has been a population influx over the last five years, but vital infrastructure spending in roading, housing, hospitals and schools hasn’t kept pace with that growth.
“I would like to see more action from the government about stimulating the economy. We need to invest heavily in infrastructure.
“Why is our government sitting on its hands? It is worried more about vague financial shocks than…about our infrastructure crisis right now.”
Hickey also touched on the New Zealand’s fleet profile, with electric vehicles getting plenty of attention at the moment.
However, he notes Kiwis are buying 65 double cab utes for every EV that is registered, with the Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux the two most popular vehicle makes in the country.
“How are you going to tow the boat to the beach with motorbikes and mountain bikes in the tray in a Nissan Leaf?”
Hickey also warned the government about the impact of the Productivity Commission’s feebate recommendation.
It would see a fee imposed on gas-guzzling vehicles in order to subsidise fuel-efficient and electric vehicles.
“If you start giving discounts to people buying Nissan Leafs and Hyundai Ioniqs, that’s transferring wealth.
“[It is] forcing the cost of climate change on to regional, outer urban and poor people who need to keep transport.”
That involves targeting a whole lot of poor large families who are driving Japanese imports, Hickey says.
“They need those vehicles to get the kids to school. [If] suddenly the government is going to say ‘you can’t have that vehicle’, that’s a problem.”
