AGP Executive Report
Last update: 8 hours agoAI Data Centres & Power: Southland residents in Makarewa are demanding answers over a proposed US$3b Datagrid hyperscale AI data centre, expected to become NZ’s second-largest electricity user, with concerns about transparency, power, noise and water; Datagrid says it has approvals and plans free cooling. Banking & Fintech: BusinessNext has raised $40m from ServiceNow Ventures at a $700m valuation to expand its AI banking platform, including “Private AI” for financial institutions and growth into Australia and New Zealand. Housing & Credit: KPMG says mortgage lending is still driving NZ credit growth, with arrears rising but “manageable” versus past stress periods; a separate update argues the housing downturn is the worst in modern history, with real prices down ~30%. Household Pressure: Kiwibank finds a quarter of Kiwis can’t cover a $500 shock without borrowing, with cost of living the main blocker. Health Systems: RNZ reports hospital IT outages in Waikato were linked to a data centre connection problem, pointing to years of under-investment. Regional Security: NZ and Papua New Guinea signed a 2026-2029 defence cooperation deal to expand dialogue, training, exercises and personnel exchanges. Markets: NZX 50 was mixed, with Meridian and AI-infrastructure-linked themes in focus, while investors weighed oil prices and AI spending.
Note: AI summary from news headlines; neutral sources weighted more to help reduce bias in the result. Feedback is welcome. Please let us know if you have any comments or suggestions about the AGP Executive Report.
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