• New Zealand economic growth remains weak.

• Inflation is sticky outside of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s 1-3% target range. US inflation is also proving sticker than previously thought, pushing up long-term yields.

• Future direction of NZ interest-rate decisions are still expected to be lower, given the restrictive nature of the current levels as evidenced by growth numbers.

• Property markets continue to struggle in the face of rising interest rates.

• NZ equities remain an underperformer—an outlier relative to other equity markets around the world—as economic weakness is revealed in company performance.

• Valuation dispersion across sectors within international equities is creating relative opportunities.