Category: Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The fizz has gone out of the beer industry.

Stats New Zealand numbers out Tuesday show beer consumption fell 10 percent to 265 million litres in the year ended December 2025.

It’s part of a sustained downward trend in overall alcohol consumption, happening in New Zealand and around the world.

Brewers Association of New Zealand executive director Dylan Firth told Midday Report it saw a bit of a shift this past year.

But not only that, Firth said there have been a “slight decline” over recent years, giving the industry time to look at what it was doing and understand its consumers.

He said there was “definitely” more of a push towards the lower, no alcohol space.

Firth said the higher alcohol beers had taken more of a hit.

“If you actually break down the data closely, the real story isn’t just about total volumes that are moving, it’s about how they’re shifting.

“The beer above 5 percent ABV, it fell about 27 percent which is quite significant but at the same time, 2.5-4 percents category was broadly stable, in fact a slight increase, so what that shows is there’s a shift in that space.”

Firth said lower carb options had seen “massive growth” and he put it down to a generational shift.

He said the younger generation don’t drink as much and they are drinking less as they get older for health reasons.

Firth also said Covid-19 lockdowns saw a change in the way people meet – with a lot moving to online – meaning not as many people were going out socially to have a drink.

Despite this, beer wasn’t going away, he said.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/26/fizz-goes-out-of-the-beer-industry-as-consumption-keeps-falling/

Source: Radio New Zealand

The Defence Force is going to begin testing air, land and sea drones from a Mount Maunganui company.

Syos Aerospace drones are used in Ukraine and it recently took another step towards helping develop ‘wingman drones’ for the UK’s Apache attack helicopters, including for strike and target acquisition

The government said the trial of the combat-proven tech would strengthen capability while growing local industry.

“Having cutting-edge drone technology developed and supported by local businesses will reduce supply chain risk and strengthen our resilience,” said Defence Minister Judith Collins in a statement on Thursday.

Neither the Beehive or Syos’ media releases said how many drones or what the deal was worth. RNZ has asked for more information.

The trials in coming months would include transporting supplies, and doing maritime patrols and route reconnaissance.

NZDF said it was looking at integrating the drones with a fire control system designed and built in New Zealand by European firm Hirtenberger.

New Zealand consulting firm Sysdoc would support training.

Defence ran consultations with companies in January around a potential plan for surveillance drones to scour the Pacific.

Its long-range drone project has a ballpark budget of $100-$300 million over four years. Other sums would be spent on AI in behind that.

Budget 2025 funded counter-drone systems – say, that shoot down drones – as one of 15 “priority” projects, but not maritime or other drones.

Collins said the Syos deal was exactly what the recently released defence industry strategy called for, for delivering on the $12 billion defence capability plan.

The army and navy get to test Syos’ SG400 Uncrewed Ground Vehicle, SM300 Uncrewed Surface Vessel, SA2 ISR drone and SA7 one-way effector drone.

The NZDF has been part of big drone-testing exercises by the US and other Five Eyes partners in recent years, but last year took just a single drone to one such joint exercise in Australia.

Syos said it was delighted.

“Our platforms and systems have been proven in some of the world’s most demanding environments, and we’re proud to bring that experience to New Zealand’s capability development,” said chief executive and founder Sam Vye.

“Structured experimentation” at NZDF aligned with how they worked, he added.

The NZDF is trying to align itself with its Australian counterpart on emerging military tech. This was an objective of the AUKUS Pillar Two agreement; NZ has not joined that agreement but was still pushing to become more interoperable as combat, reconnaissance and other tech becomes more advanced.

Australia announced a three-year research project into counter-drone technology this week.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/26/defence-force-to-test-air-land-and-sea-drones-from-mount-maunganui-company/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour has renewed his call for the government to sell its 51 percent stake in Air New Zealand after it reported a significant half-year loss.

The airline posted a bottom-line loss of $40 million in the six months ended December, compared to last year’s profit of $106m.

Revenue was up just over 1 percent to $3.44b, compared to $3.4b a year ago.

Seymour, also the leader of the ACT Party, criticised the airline, saying it should go back to the basics.

“The taxpayer has to have a purpose for having all that capital tied up. My question is, what is that purpose if they’re not providing a service that is affordable and timely? Instead, they seem to have been distracted by a million other objectives.”

Seymour said Air NZ had been doing “politically motivated stuff” when it couldn’t take off and land on time for a decent price.

“Get woke, go broke. We hear about electric planes, glossy reports on climate change, paper cups in the Koru Lounge. What they can’t seem to do is take off and land on time,” he said.

“I’m fortunate that as an MP I don’t have to pay for work flights, but whenever I look at one privately, they’re looking at $600 to go from Wellington to Invercargill one way. That’s crazy.”

Seymour’s comments come as the airline continues to face severe disruption due to grounded aircraft.

Air NZ said the half-year loss was largely driven by global engine maintenance delays, slower-than-expected recovery in domestic demand, increasing costs, and a weaker New Zealand dollar.

It said that while capacity would likely increase modestly in the second half with aircraft returning to service and new aircraft, the airline was cautious on whether it would translate to earnings uplift.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/26/david-seymour-renews-call-to-sell-governments-air-nz-shares-after-half-year-loss/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour has renewed his call for the government to sell its 51 percent stake in Air New Zealand after it reported a significant half-year loss.

The airline posted a bottom-line loss of $40 million in the six months ended December, compared to last year’s profit of $106m.

Revenue was up just over 1 percent to $3.44b, compared to $3.4b a year ago.

Seymour, also the leader of the ACT Party, criticised the airline, saying it should go back to the basics.

“The taxpayer has to have a purpose for having all that capital tied up. My question is, what is that purpose if they’re not providing a service that is affordable and timely? Instead, they seem to have been distracted by a million other objectives.”

Seymour said Air NZ had been doing “politically motivated stuff” when it couldn’t take off and land on time for a decent price.

“Get woke, go broke. We hear about electric planes, glossy reports on climate change, paper cups in the Koru Lounge. What they can’t seem to do is take off and land on time,” he said.

“I’m fortunate that as an MP I don’t have to pay for work flights, but whenever I look at one privately, they’re looking at $600 to go from Wellington to Invercargill one way. That’s crazy.”

Seymour’s comments come as the airline continues to face severe disruption due to grounded aircraft.

Air NZ said the half-year loss was largely driven by global engine maintenance delays, slower-than-expected recovery in domestic demand, increasing costs, and a weaker New Zealand dollar.

It said that while capacity would likely increase modestly in the second half with aircraft returning to service and new aircraft, the airline was cautious on whether it would translate to earnings uplift.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/26/david-seymour-renews-call-to-sell-government-air-nzs-shares-after-half-year-loss/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour has renewed his call for the government to sell its 51 percent stake in Air New Zealand after it reported a significant half-year loss.

The airline posted a bottom-line loss of $40 million in the six months ended December, compared to last year’s profit of $106m.

Revenue was up just over 1 percent to $3.44b, compared to $3.4b a year ago.

Seymour, also the leader of the ACT Party, criticised the airline, saying it should go back to the basics.

“The taxpayer has to have a purpose for having all that capital tied up. My question is, what is that purpose if they’re not providing a service that is affordable and timely? Instead, they seem to have been distracted by a million other objectives.”

Seymour said Air NZ had been doing “politically motivated stuff” when it couldn’t take off and land on time for a decent price.

“Get woke, go broke. We hear about electric planes, glossy reports on climate change, paper cups in the Koru Lounge. What they can’t seem to do is take off and land on time,” he said.

“I’m fortunate that as an MP I don’t have to pay for work flights, but whenever I look at one privately, they’re looking at $600 to go from Wellington to Invercargill one way. That’s crazy.”

Seymour’s comments come as the airline continues to face severe disruption due to grounded aircraft.

Air NZ said the half-year loss was largely driven by global engine maintenance delays, slower-than-expected recovery in domestic demand, increasing costs, and a weaker New Zealand dollar.

It said that while capacity would likely increase modestly in the second half with aircraft returning to service and new aircraft, the airline was cautious on whether it would translate to earnings uplift.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/26/deputy-pm-david-seymour-renews-call-to-sell-govt-shares-after-air-nzs-big-half-year-loss/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Sky TV has made a strong first-half profit and is on track to pay shareholders a full year dividend of at least 30 cents a share.

While it expects trading conditions to remain challenging, Sky TV chief executive Sophie Moloney said earnings growth would continue into the next financial year.

“The first half of FY26 marks an important step forward for Sky,” she said.

• Net profit $52.4m* vs $1.7m loss
• Revenue $415.4m vs $385m
• Underlying profit $78.2m* vs $60.7m
• Operating expenses $346.8m vs 347.9m
• Interim dividend 15 cents per share vs 8.5 cps

*includes purchase of Sky Free

Moloney said Sky’s half-year performance reflected the execution of Sky’s multi-year strategy] and the financial and strategic benefits of the Sky Free purchase of Three owner Discovery NZ for $1.

“The Discovery NZ acquisition was a well-structured deal for Sky,” she said.

“It’s not often you get to acquire an asset for $1 and significantly strengthen the balance sheet at the same time – as is also evidenced by the gain on bargain purchase of $34.4 million we report today, reflecting the fair value of the assets acquired.”

Moloney said the combined business was already demonstrating benefits for Sky.

The company expected to report a full year underlying profit in a range of $145m and $160m, with revenue in a range of $820m and $835m and a dividend of at least 30 cps.

“Although the economic environment remains uncertain, earnings growth is expected to continue from FY27, and we remain confident in our ability to deliver at least $10m of incremental EBITDA (underlying profit) by FY28 through delivery of synergies across the group.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/26/sky-tv-trumpets-major-turnaround-with-52-4m-half-year-profit/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Explainer – New Zealand has cracked down on two hugely popular online prediction markets, declaring them illegal here.

The Polymarket and Kalshi platforms are valued at billions of dollars, but the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has now ordered them to stop providing services to Kiwis.

“To avoid breaching New Zealand law, they must cease offering services to New Zealanders,” Vicki Scott, director of gambling for the DIA, told RNZ.

Here’s what you need to know about the world of prediction markets and how it’s changing in New Zealand.

What exactly are prediction markets, anyway?

Basically, it’s where people place bets on the future – that could be sports, politics, weather – even whether or not Jesus Christ might return before 2027.

Polymarket is the big dog in the arena, but there are many other sites, and they’re particularly popular among younger people. Billions of dollars in trading volume was seen during the recent American Super Bowl – not just the game, but things like what musician Bad Bunny would do during his halftime show.

“Any number of things have now been gamified and monetised and turned into basically a casino,” Bobby Allyn, a technology correspondent for America’s National Public Radio, told RNZ’s Afternoons recently.

“Prediction markets are apps where you can wager money on sports, on the outcome of say, a press conference – what will someone say at a press conference … even things like how many people will die of famine in Gaza this year, what will President Trump do in Venezuela now that Maduro has been toppled.”

Some of the big bets doing the rounds this week include whether the former Prince Andrew will be sentenced to prison and when or if the United States might launch a military strike against Iran. But it can even get as granular as what exact words a politician might say in a speech, in “mention markets”.

There are New Zealand predictions in the mix, such as one on Kalshi over who will win November’s election, or wagers on Polymarket on what the Reserve Bank will decide in future Official Cash Rate announcements.

Kalshi co-founder and chief executive Tarek Monsour has said: “The long-term vision is to financialise everything and create a tradable asset out of any difference in opinion.”

New Zealanders have used the platforms and there are many variations of them, not all of which wager money. An Auckland engineer recently told The Spinoff that the appeal of betting on outcomes “makes me feel more engaged and connected to events, because I want to see how things go”.

So is it just a forecasting tool or is it officially gambling?

What has the government decided?

The DIA has weighed in to say these platforms are indeed a kind of gambling under New Zealand laws.

“Prediction markets such as Polymarket and Kalshi are caught by both the Gambling Act 2003 and the Racing Industry Act 2020,” Scott said.

“They both offer products that meet the general definition of ‘gambling’ and the more specific definition of ‘bookmaking’ in the Gambling Act. They are accordingly prohibited under the Gambling Act.”

Scott said that “the surge in popularity and growth of prediction markets means time is right to take a clear regulatory stance”.

The government has sent letters to the companies asking them to prevent access in New Zealand.

Other countries like Australia and the UK have taken similar positions.

One of the big legal debates going on world-wide is whether these sites actually are gambling sites. Multiple lawsuits are playing out in America. The Trump administration has so far tended to back the prediction markets.

And then there are competitors such as Manifold, which uses its own “play” currency Mana instead of betting money.

“Those involved say they’re not gambling,” NPR’s Allyn said.

“They say these apps are placing a bet on a future outcome. But, I mean, look, if I were to explain to you in detail how this works and then you compare this to a casino I think you’d basically say there’s virtually no difference. I think it’s very fair to say that this is just a new tech-powered version of gambling.

“It’s a classic sort of tech company move to say ‘we’re not the thing that you think we are because we want to avoid the regulations.’”

Prediction websites aren’t entirely new, of course. In New Zealand, the iPredict site produced by Victoria University of Wellington ran from 2008 to 2015.

It closed not because it was decreed a gambling site, but instead after former Associate Justice Minister Simon Bridges refused to grant it an exemption from the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act, declaring that it was a “legitimate money laundering risk”.

New Zealand Initiative chief economist Eric Crampton said that back then, iPredict wasn’t being held to the standards prediction markets are now by the DIA.

“Deciding that prediction markets are necessarily gambling, however, is inconsistent with New Zealand’s prior authorisation of iPredict. It also shuts Kiwis out of an emerging financial market sector.

“iPredict, like other prediction markets, provided remarkably accurate predictions on future events like election outcomes, inflation outcomes, and interest rate decisions. It ended in 2015 not because it was considered gambling, but because it was too small to be able to afford to comply with new regulations that were mainly aimed at banks.”

Scott said the Financial Markets Authority and Problem Gaming Foundation were consulted and supportive of the DIA’s stance.

“I note that neither Kalshi nor Polymarket applied to the FMA for consideration or licensing of their products,” she said.

Crampton said electronic trading companies such as Tradeweb are increasingly working with prediction markets like Kalshi, and Allyn also noted that “they also are partnering with pretty huge institutions on Wall Street”.

“I expect that new hybrid financial instruments will soon be developed combining prediction market contracts and traditional financial market contracts,” Crampton said. “Regulating this space as gambling makes little sense.”

So are they really predicting the future?

Betting odds for Polymarket and Kalshi have seeped into the real world. Allyn said such reporting can influence actual events.

“Right now we’re seeing a number of awards shows, a number of news organisations like CNN using the odds of prediction markets as part of their broadcast.

“These Polymarket odds are just mostly young men speculating on Discord and Reddit about what they think is going to happen – I mean, it’s pure speculation. When odds move up or down in some way it’s just a bunch of young people in basements slamming on their phones $10 here, $10 there, I don’t really see how this is providing something that’s more authoritative and more credible than polls.”

But as a counterpoint, Crampton called such descriptions clueless.

“Prediction markets prove remarkably accurate, providing regular updated data in areas where official forecasts are few and far between. The (US) Federal Reserve recently published a working paper based on Kalshi data, showing both the accuracy of Kalshi’s prices and their importance as leading financial market indicators.”

Researchers have found that speculators make markets more accurate, he said.

“Informed traders then have a stronger incentive to work hard at figuring out accurate prices, because they have people to trade with.”

Crampton cited an example in the 2024 US presidential election where a trader won big betting on Trump winning, by looking at polls that asked people who they thought their neighbours would vote for.

“From that he learned that Trump was (sadly) far more popular than the polls expected. He bought a lot of contracts that would pay out if Trump won, moving the prices to reflect that reality. And he was rewarded for his efforts.”

Does this only cover Polymarket and Kalshi?

The two companies have been specifically called out, but the decision sets a precedent for others in the prediction market space in New Zealand.

“The issues are not specific to Polymarket and Kalshi, although they are the biggest players in this space currently,” Scott said. “We will take a similar approach to other providers as they arise.”

“The approach we have taken aligns with our approach to overseas betting operators (including many well-known international brands) who have been advised they must withdraw immediately from the NZ market.

“Most have complied, geo-blocking their sites. In our view there’s no reason why prediction markets should be treated any differently.”

What did the platforms say?

The DIA sent letters to both Kalshi and Polymarket, informing them their services were illegal and they must prevent them from being accessed by people in New Zealand.

“Whilst neither have formally responded, Kalshi responded almost immediately by deactivating customer accounts and preventing new accounts,” Scott said this week.

“Polymarket do not appear to have taken any action, and we will be following up with them directly.”

Is online gambling legal at all in New Zealand?

At the moment, only TAB New Zealand can legally offer online race and sports betting.

Currently it’s legal to try your luck on offshore casino gambling sites, according to the DIA, but online casinos based in New Zealand are illegal and it’s illegal to advertise offshore casino gambling websites in New Zealand. Safer Gambling Aotearoa warns to use those sites “at your own risk”.

The Online Casino Gambling Bill, which would regulate and license up to 15 offshore casino operators, is currently progressing through Parliament.

The bill “will introduce a regulatory system for online gambling in New Zealand, which will prioritise harm minimisation, consumer protection, and tax collection,” Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke Van Velden said in introducing the legislation last year.

What happens if I find a way to still use Polymarket or similar sites?

Scott warns that it’s risky.

“New Zealanders who engage with Polymarket should do so with caution. There will be no recourse through the gambling regulator if things go wrong and there appears to be no harm minimisation protections in place.”

However, Crampton said that he felt the sites were legitimate enterprises.

“Kalshi at least is (United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission)-authorised and CFTC-regulated. And I have never heard of payout issues at Polymarket.

“There are the occasional problems that every prediction market has in contract interpretation; iPredict had those too. Even if everyone is diligent and well-intentioned, sometimes the world moves in ways that make it hard to interpret whether a contract should pay out at $1 or at $0. It’s rare, but occasionally unavoidable.”

While Polymarket and Kalshi are now considered illegal in New Zealand, Scott said the DIA will not be going after individual users.

“Although it is technically an offence to participate in illegal gambling, we will not be looking to penalise those engaging with these platforms, our focus is on the platforms themselves.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/26/why-betting-on-top-online-prediction-markets-is-now-illegal-in-new-zealand/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Air New Zealand has slumped to a half-year loss as it continues to face severe disruption due to grounded aircraft, with challenges likely to continue in the short-term.

The airline posted a bottom-line loss of $40m in the six months ended December, compared to last year’s profit of $106m.

Revenue was up just over 1 percent to $3.44b, compared to $3.4b a year ago.

Key numbers for the six months ended December 2025 compared with a year ago:

• Net loss $40m vs $106m
• Revenue $3.44b vs $3.4b
• Pre-tax loss $59m vs $155m profit
• No interim dividend vs 1.25 cents per share

The airline said the result was largely driven by global engine maintenance delays, slower-than-expected recovery in domestic demand, increasing costs, and a weaker New Zealand dollar.

The pre-tax loss came in worse than market expectations and the airline’s own forecast of between $30m and $55m.

Air NZ was also undergoing a major review of the business as it looked to cut costs and return to profitability.

“With the support of the board we are undertaking a comprehensive review of all aspects of the business, with the objective of returning the airline to sustained profitability through enhanced operational performance, growth and further cost transformation initiatives,” chief executive Nikhil Ravishankar said.

“While we are disappointed that the engine availability issues have taken longer than anticipated to resolve, we are pleased with recent progress and now expect a total of four grounded Airbus neo and Boeing 787 aircraft to return to service throughout the 2026 calendar year.”

Ravishankar expected Air NZ to receive two of its 10 new 787 aircraft later in the financial year, providing widebody capacity growth of 20-25 percent over the next two years.

Domestic demand soft, costs high

Air NZ said overall passenger revenue improved 4 percent to $3 billion on the back of more capacity to Australia and the Pacific Islands, and more premium seats on long-haul routes.

But it said domestic demand recovery was slower-than-expected, while international performance was supported by strong offshore bookings, particularly for premium cabins.

It said demand for outbound long-haul travel was subdued.

Jet fuel prices were on average slightly weaker than the prior period, but the airline said lower fuel prices were more than offset by a weaker New Zealand dollar.

“Non-fuel operating cost inflation of approximately $75 million was driven primarily by higher mandated domestic passenger levies, engineering and maintenance costs, and airport landing charges,” the airline said.

“The airline’s concern is not only about the current level of these costs, but the future trajectory and potential for further increases over time, which would place additional pressure on the business, and the sustainability of regional connectivity.”

Conditions not expected to improve in second half

Air NZ said while capacity would likely increase modestly in the second half with aircraft returning to service and new aircraft, the airline was cautious on whether it would translate to earnings uplift.

“This is because widebody capacity cannot be operationalised into the schedule and sold at short notice,” it said.

“The primary constraint is uncertainty in the timing of aircraft and engine returns, which limits the ability to plan and sell additional flying with confidence.”

The airline said disruption-related costs and inefficiencies would also take time to unwind.

Based on current trading conditions, and assuming a jet fuel price of US$85 per barrel, Air NZ expected second-half earnings to be broadly in line with, or modestly below the first half.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/26/air-new-zealand-swings-to-half-year-loss-amid-severe-fleet-disruption/