It's Anything but Dry!
The Reserve Bank Governor Dr Alan Bollard has shown that he has a taste for drama to offset an otherwise dry outlook moulded by necessity in his profession. I remember when the ex-Commerce Commission Chairman and Secretary of the Treasury surprised the earnest audience assembled at 2002's Leadership conference (the sequel to the 2001 Knowledge Wave conference).
It was not through controversial content of his address, unlike when his predecessor Dr Don Brash, our National leader outlined his road map for New Zealand��s future during 2000's Knowledge Wave conference and earned criticism from Prime Minister Clark and Deputy Michael Cullen for showing them up. Instead, Dr Bollard did not deviate from the Reserve Bank message. In a carefully planned but seemingly spontaneous routine he marched up to the podium, tossed his jacket aside, revealed an America Club T-shirt, cast his glasses away, and donned a sailing cap, to which the crowd responded enthusiastically.
During March 11's Reserve Bank monetary policy statement announcement, Dr Bollard did not surprise the market by stating that the Reserve Bank had decided to leave the Official Cash Rate unchanged at 5.25 %. However, he announced that the Reserve Bank had provided advice to the Minister of Finance recommending that, as one of its monetary policy implementation tools, it should have the capacity to intervene in the foreign exchange market to influence the level of the exchange rate. There may be other external factors acting all at the same time, but nonetheless the exchange rate immediately dropped by a cent overnight, reducing the kiwi's value to less than US66c.
Interestingly, Hon. Michael Cullen has been under a lot of pressure ever since informing the Finance & Expenditure select Committee in November that the Government was "not without options" in the face of the currency's strength. That contradicted a comment to the Economist online in late September, when he said there were "no effective policy instruments and that to abandon the longstanding policy of non-intervention risked changing private sector behaviour."
Hours before this Wednesday's Finance & Expenditure Select Committee, where Dr Bollard anticipated a great deal of interest and questions, he released five pages of detailed explanatory notes in light of confusing and conflicting statements that had been made since his announcements a week ago. Dr Bollard went to great length to assure the Committee MPs that the Reserve Bank will only use the new tool in the extremes of the exchange rate cycle, when the exchange rate is clearly unjustifiable in relation to the underlying economic drivers, and that intervention would be opportunistic rather than a "come what may" stand in the market against the odds. Of course, it would be inappropriate for the Governor to comment on what the trigger rate is or had been in the past. He went on to say that that intervention can be effective but the impact is usually small and possibly temporary.
The price for this new tool? The Select committee was told that the total has not yet been derived. Through the Budget, the Governor is seeking appropriation for capital injections and additional foreign exchange capacity; it will be billions that the Minister of Finance has to factor in for the May Budget announcement.
It was Leprosy in 1904, SARS in 2004
Along with two mayors of Wellington and representatives from the Chinese and wider communities, a commemoration was held on Somes Island, off the coast of Wellington, on 14 March 2004. That day marked the 100th anniversary of suspected leper Kim Lee's death on the uninhabited Mokopuna Island. Lee's lonely exile highlighted the prejudiced attitude of early 20th century New Zealanders towards Chinese immigrants, who were perceived to be carriers of leprosy. Lee's suspected leprosy was never officially diagnosed, nor was a post-mortem carried out. Although Lee was widely known as an opium addict, there was no evidence to support the assumption that he had contracted leprosy.
At the 2003 Sister Cities convention in Masterton five visiting Chinese delegations were barred from the event due to fear of the SARS epidemic, although the New Zealand Ambassador to China did participate despite having travelled back to New Zealand via Hong Kong before the event. Along with Auckland City Council's delegation, I pulled out of the convention.
The lesson should be learned by the Government and Health Authority to be sensitive towards Society��s fear of disease, especially new ones. Information and procedures implemented to safeguard the spread of disease should be communicated rigorously to potentially "vulnerable" communities and wider communities. In 2003, I was the patron of the SARS foundation in providing information and seminars to ensure that Chinese communities are informed and to avoid a possible backlash.
History should be acknowledged and reflected on for us to draw strength from. Mr Kim Lee might just still be a name to us but if we can find our voices and strength to confront current injustices then that name has carried meaning and that life was not lived in vain.
Ponsonby Fringe Festival
Saturday March 20 to Saturday April 3
The third Ponsonby Fringe Festival celebrating a wealth of local creative and artistic talent. It will showcase a 'fusion' of fashion, food and music over two weeks. The festival will close with a [grand] 'Finale Fashion Show & Charity Art Auction' with donations going to the NZ Breast Cancer Foundation. See you there!
