Comments for NZX Blog

Comment on Commercial accountability and unlisted SOEs – Bruce Harker, Trustpower Annual Meeting by Sam Bejjani

Sam Bejjani — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 04:52:54 +0000

I fully endorse the suggestion to partially privatise SOEs, as it makes sense on so many fronts; creates depth for our sharemarket, allows Kiwis to share in the success and profitability of SOE (a bit like hedging for rising power prices), and incentivises more commercial accountability as mentioned in the speech.

Calls for partial privatisation have gradually become more vocal, yet I am frustrated to see that little has happened so far. Yes, it has been done badly in the past but let’s learn from those mistakes and find a way to do it better.

Opponents to the idea often use the old argument that we risk seeing those valued assets fall into foreign hands, but there are ways to partially privatise while restricting foreign ownership. Other countries (Singapore) have done it successfully, so once again, maybe we should learn the lesson and get on with it.

Comment on Best Investor Website Awards announced today, NZO #1 by Greg Comfort

Greg Comfort — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 21:39:09 +0000

Great stuff, is good to see these annual measures being done, and congrats to NZOG.

Like many business metrics, the value comes in monitoring trends over time, so it is important work like this is supported and continues. This is especially so for analysis of company web sites, as many of the other web award schemes running are very consumer orientated (the NetGuide awards, for instance), so well done NZSX for supporting and promoting this year’s BIWA. Please keep it up.

Comment on Best Investor Website Awards announced today, NZO #1 by Chris Roberts

Chris Roberts — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:43:19 +0000

NZOG was very pleased to win this year’s award. If I could offer one key piece of advice it would be – keep it simple. Think about what sort of information investors want and make it easy and logical to find.
NZOG has a market cap that puts us in the NZX15, and we have over 15,000 shareholders, many of whom take an active interest in our operations. But we have only 19 staff, including a Public Affairs department of one! So we needed a website that met investor needs, but was easy to maintain. Outwide have a great content management system and did a brilliant job building the site. A couple of hours a week of my time is all that is now needed to keep the website fresh and relevant.
We are looking at the moment to make a few subtle changes to the NZOG website, but we think we’ve generally already got it about right – and we’re delighted others agree!

Comment on A Measurable Goal for New Zealand – How will you make a difference to the future? by Paul Newfield

Paul Newfield — Wed, 13 May 2009 02:51:25 +0000

New Zealand has come joint ninth with Denmark in an international “prosperity index” compiled by The Legatum Institute, a London think tank run by three former senior White House staffers in the Bush administration. Notably, “the index does not rank countries according to which have the most material wealth or the highest levels of happiness at a given time… rather, it is an index of drivers, which means that countries are ranked by how well they are doing at fostering economic growth and improved quality of life.”

Of course, ranking countries based on “drivers” of prosperity is more subjective than tracking the outcomes directly, since there can be plenty of debate over which “drivers” actually result in national prosperity. For example, the Legatum Institute includes a score for religious belief in their prosperity index.

What do others think? Does this index provide a useful measure of our national wellbeing?

See http://www.prosperity.com/ranking.aspx

Comment on Economy on the edge: Swan dive or belly flop? by Philip Bridgen

Philip Bridgen — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 03:47:17 +0000

I am impressed by Stewart Forsyth’s practical suggestions (26/01/09) on developing better targeted attractants for Kiwi emigres and others from overseas who have skills we need, but who are career and opportunity oriented. I also support Les Rudd’s call (9/02/09) for the 15% R & D credit to be reinstated, and his other suggestions to encourage NZ-based R & D. Up until these two contributions, I had grown increasingly perturbed by what seemed to me to be an undue focus in the Swanbelly Blog on interest and tax machinations as offering the way out of our troubles.

The productive segments of NZ, which are the only ones that can or will get us out of the S**t, are collectively no larger than many international corporations – whether in terms of people involved, revenues, productive capacity, or whatever. Perhaps the representatives of our productive sectors, and others of a similar mind, should find ways to cooperate and consult in using well-proven business strategic planning processes to identify NZ Inc’s strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats (Yes, the good old Boston Consulting SWOT analysis). Also the BCG Growth-share matrix, to identify NZ’s Cash Cows (no, not necessarily dairy products!), the Stars we should grow, the Question Marks that could be stars, and the Dogs that have had their day.

In other words, IMHO, what NZ Inc really needs right now, rather than abstruse discussions on monetary and fiscal policies, are realistic, practical, immediately do-able tactics to identify and take concrete action on, inter alia:-

1. the things (products and services) that currently and in the near-term future provide NZ’s greatest net income from overseas markets;

2. the areas of marketable research, science, innovation and technology where NZ has or can build market and strategic advantage;

3. the specific hurdles (e.g. NZ govt or other policies, investment finance availability, relevant education provision, etc) that hamper progress with items 1 and 2, and the actions available to mitigate or eliminate them;

4. the infrastructural items – e.g. pervasive high-speed broadband, fail-safe electricity supply – and improved or new services, structures, policies and procedures required to fully support the renewed and more focused NZ Inc activities; and,

5. the mechanisms through which discussion and decision leading to action on all of these matters must be coordinated and directed toward real, ongoing success that produces real, measurable positive results for all NZers.

I truly hope that this submission generates useful discussion, regardless of either praise or criticism.