Financial stability risks remain higher than in recent years due to global uncertainty and underperformance in parts of the New Zealand economy. Trade tensions present risks to our exporters and have affected business confidence. Persistent weakness in the domestic economy is creating challenging conditions for businesses, exposing banks to credit losses. However, financial stress is not uniform across the economy, with lower interest rates and high agricultural export prices supporting some sectors. Banks also have robust financial buffers to absorb shocks. Global economic fragmentation and policy uncertainty ... (full story)