Archive
| Customs and MAF Increase Fees | |||||
| 21 Jun 2010 | From 1 July, the New Zealand Customs Service will start collecting a new 'Biosecurity Levy' of $12.50 per shipment on behalf of MAF. More... | ||||
| Importers Call for World-wide Boycott of Maersk | |||||
| 28 May 2010 | Maersk, one of the world's largest shipping companies, announced that it will no longer carry frozen orange roughy fish on its ships. More... | ||||
| The China Surcharge | |||||
| 3 May 2010 | One of our members imported a couple of shipments from Xingang in China. The freight was prepaid by the supplier in China, but the New Zealand forwarder billed the importer $1,400 for a "China surcharge" and $1,800 for "overseas shipping". More... | ||||
| MAF Abandons 12-hour Rule | |||||
| 28 Apr 2010 | MAF decided not to enforce a rule designed to punish importers who fail to make a declaration twelve hours before the ship arrives in port. More... | ||||
| MAF's Latest Money Grab | |||||
| 26 Feb 2010 | MAF Biosecurity has issued a new 'law' (under delegated authority) to start detaining thousands of low risk containers, physically inspect all six sides of each box, while charging importers $100 per hour plus fees. More... | ||||
| Climate Change and Eugenics | |||||
| 31 Jan 2010 | Eugenics is the study and practice of selective breeding applied to humans, with the aim of improving the species (Wikipedia). More... | ||||
| Green Confetti | |||||
| 22 Dec 2009 | The Greens and the last Labour government decided to fund a "Buy Kiwi Campaign". They spent $10.2 million from our taxes, most of it ($8.4m) with an advertising agency. More... | ||||
| Mercantilism is not Free Trade | |||||
| 22 Nov 2009 | The Government decided to break a promise made under APEC to have free trade by 2010. Tariffs will remain frozen for another five years. This decision was made against advice from Treasury. More... | ||||
| Recession and Imports | |||||
| 15 May 2009 | The current global recession started as an old-fashioned bank run in the US. Confidence in the liquidity of the finance sector was quickly restored by the injection of gargantuan sums of taxpayers' money, coupled with government guarantees. More... | ||||
| Trans-Tasman Domestic Flights? | |||||
| 5 Mar 2009 | The Prime Ministers of New Zealand and Australia announced an intention to turn trans-Tasman flights into domestic flights. This idea has been on the drawing board since 1992. We'll tell you why there has been no progress. More... | ||||
| Briefing to Incoming Ministers | |||||
| 5 Feb 2009 | The Importers Institute provides a briefing to new Ministers Maurice Williamson (Customs) and David Carter (Bisosecurity). More... | ||||
| Failed Airline in Trouble Again | |||||
| 15 Dec 2008 | Air New Zealand is being prosecuted by the Commerce Commission for anti-competitive behaviour. The Commission alleges that the airline conspired with other airlines to fix prices. More... | ||||
| Don't Vote Labour | |||||
| 4 Dec 2007 | The Government has prohibited the importation of older used cars, in response to lobbying by new car importers. This will result in substantial price increases at the lower end of the market. More... | ||||
| Importers Institute Sells Carbon Credits | |||||
| 10 Sep 2007 | The Importers Institute announced today that it is offering to sell carbon credits to the public of New Zealand. This is a great opportunity for concerned New Zealanders to reduce their eco-guilt. More... | ||||
| 'Target' Conned the Public | |||||
| 5 Sep 2007 | The Importers Institute accused TV3's Target program of conning the public, knowingly and deliberately, to improve the program's ratings. More... | ||||
| Formaldehyde - the Real Scandal | |||||
| 29 Aug 2007 | New Zealanders have been misled - by TV3 and Government laboratory AgriQuality. The Importers Institute reveals details of a scandal of shonky science. More... | ||||
| Government Subsidises Imports | |||||
| 23 Aug 2007 | The Government is spending millions of dollars on a 'Buy New Zealand' campaign. Importers are the main beneficiaries of this largesse. More... | ||||
| The First Victims of Climate Change Hysteria | |||||
| 23 Apr 2007 | Would you be prepared to sacrifice a little bit of convenience to save future generations from the catastrophe of Global Warming? Of course you would. More... | ||||
| Europe and Fascism - again | |||||
| 30 Mar 2007 | As the European Union celebrated its 50th anniversary, the Importers Institute told a seminar held in Auckland on 19 March that Europeans are again flirting with a form of fascism. More... | ||||
| Miles of Nonsense | |||||
| 20 Dec 2006 | European Greens call for the destruction of the basis of the New Zealand economy. Prime Minister Helen Clark, while agreeing with the basic premise of their argument, asks them to go easy on us because we are quite Green ourselves. More... | ||||
| Parallel Importing Opportunity! | |||||
| 6 Nov 2006 | The Importers Institute knows of a possible opportunity for members interested in parallel importing: Vittoria bike tyres, made in Italy (www.vittoria.com) More... | ||||
| Not Fit for Office | |||||
| 31 Oct 2006 | A report commissioned by Tony Blair's government warns that the end is nigh and said that Europeans should not eat food from faraway places like New Zealand, if they want to save the planet. More... | ||||
| Ports Would Like a Little Less Competition | |||||
| 13 Oct 2006 | The ports of Auckland and Tauranga, facing a decision by the Maersk shipping line, would like to stop competing with each other. More... | ||||
| An Onslaught of Regulations | |||||
| 28 Jul 2005 | The Government is planning new regulations to certify building materials, charge for packaging levies and save water. All for a modest cost to you. More... | ||||
| The Bureaucracy is Booming | |||||
| 29 Jun 2005 | Since 2002/03, the number of people employed by the New Zealand Customs Service has increased by 61 percent. More... | ||||
| Free Trade (sort of) with Thailand | |||||
| 6 Dec 2004 | New Zealand and Thailand have signed a free trade agreement. But, have they? More... | ||||
| Government Refuses Compensation | |||||
| 9 Aug 2004 | A Select Committee of Parliament recommended that a Southland farmer be compensated for costs incurred in the correct classification of a tractor. The Government has now refused to comply. More... | ||||
| Latin America Seminar | |||||
| 30 Jul 2004 | The Latin America New Zealand Business Council is running a seminar featuring three senior business men from Chile, Mexico and Peru More... | ||||
| A Story of Trucks, Tractors and Injustice | |||||
| 7 Jul 2004 | A Southland farmer claims that Customs perverted the course of Justice thirteen years ago. He has been battling with officials and politicians ever since. More... | ||||
| MAF back-tracks on inland port controls | |||||
| 28 Jun 2004 | MAF announced that from 1 July, containers could no longer be moved to an inland port without their prior 'clearance'. This decision has now been reversed. More... | ||||
| Festival of Thailand | |||||
| 22 Jun 2004 | The Royal Thai Embassy, together with Thai Airways International and the Tourism Authority of Thailand, will host a 'Festival of Thailand' at the Auckland Showgrounds on Sunday 27 June 2004. More... | ||||
| The New MAF Container Control System | |||||
| 28 Apr 2004 | My friend Pam is still fuming. On arrival at Auckland airport, she was greeted by a $200 fine, because her shoes had some dirt – from one of Melbourne's better golf courses. More... | ||||
| Three Cars and You're In | |||||
| 14 Apr 2004 | The new Motor Vehicle Sales Act requires any person who carries on the business of motor vehicle trading to register with the Ministry of Economic Development. More... | ||||
| Free Trade Agreement With North Korea | |||||
| 1 Apr 2004 | In a surprise announcement, Prime Minister Helen Clark said today that her government has entered into a free trade agreement with North Korea. More... | ||||
| The Big Shipping Heist of 2004: $150 million | |||||
| 17 Mar 2004 | Shipping companies have colluded to transfer up to $150 million from importers to their bank accounts. Government does nothing More... | ||||
| Containers Held Up, New Import Taxes | |||||
| 19 Dec 2003 | From 1 January, importers will no longer be able to unpack containers from the back of a truck and will have to pay new taxes More... | ||||
| Conference Speeches | |||||
| 24 Nov 2003 | The Importers Institute had its annual conference last week. We heard speeches from two first-rate thinkers, Deborah Coddington and Chris Trotter. More... | ||||
| Chris Trotter's Speech | |||||
| 20 Nov 2003 | Address to the Importers Institute Annual Conference, November 2003. More... | ||||
| Deborah Coddington's Speech | |||||
| 20 Nov 2003 | Address to the Importers Institute Annual Conference, November 2003. More... | ||||
| So, does Corporate Welfare work? | |||||
| 19 Nov 2003 | Like the hospital with no patients, the insurance office with no business is a model of efficiency More... | ||||
| Conference, DVDs, MAF and Car Imports | |||||
| 18 Nov 2003 | Confrence reminder, feedback on DVDs article, MAF closes for holidays and new regulations that require importers of cars to register as traders. More... | ||||
| DVDs and Government Stupidity | |||||
| 13 Nov 2003 | The government decided to force New Zealanders to wait up to nine months before seeing new films, to allow distributors to use second-hand film reels More... | ||||
| The Importers Institute 2003 Conference | |||||
| 3 Nov 2003 | This year's conference includes thought-provoking addresses on current political and industry issues, the announcement of a new web service of trade statistics and an introduction to Trade Commissioners. More... | ||||
| Don't Waste Your Time, Mr Hu | |||||
| 28 Oct 2003 | Prime Minister Helen Clark said an agreement to consult on economic cooperation framework signed with Chinese President Hu Jingtao may ultimately lead towards a free trade deal. Mr Hu shouldn't hold his breath - and neither should we. It's all talk. More... | ||||
| Who Will Protect Us From Protectionists? | |||||
| 9 Oct 2003 | Once upon a time our trade policy was designed to protect manufacturers from competing imports. Now, it's designed to promote the agendas of ideologues More... | ||||
| Government Reneges on APEC Trade Deal | |||||
| 30 Sep 2003 | The government of New Zealand has reneged on an APEC commitment to eliminate tariffs by 2010 More... | ||||
| Freight Collusion and Other Matters | |||||
| 9 Jun 2003 | The good folk from our shipping companies are again busy colluding against importers. There is a big retailers' conference on the way. Lincoln is surveying track & trace systems for APEC. More... | ||||
| When Security Makes Us Less Safe | |||||
| 28 Mar 2003 | Are the new US Customs security initiatives making Americans less safe, at a huge cost to the rest of the world? Read our presentation to the 3rd Annual Ports and Shipping Forum. More... | ||||
| Make hay while the sun shines | |||||
| 23 Jan 2003 | The New Zealand dollar has bounced back from 40 to 55 US cents. Some exporters are busy trying to talk it down. They shouldn't fret - the current value is unlikely to be sustained. More... | ||||
| Labour and Free Trade | |||||
| 17 Jan 2003 | The Labour government says that it is in favour of free trade. Do its actions match the talk? More... | ||||
| Submission to Commerce Commission | |||||
| 22 Dec 2002 | The Importers Institute today lodged this submission to the NZ Commerce Commission and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission on the Air New Zealand / Qantas proposals. More... | ||||
| The Role of NZ Customs in US Security | |||||
| 12 Dec 2002 | The US Customs Service introduced new security systems for US-bound containers. The New Zealand Customs Service has gone one better. More... | ||||
| The tax that dares not speak its name | |||||
| 9 Dec 2002 | From 1 December, importers are being debited a new fee of $18 for every commercial shipment. More... | ||||
| Once Were Lecturers | |||||
| 8 Dec 2002 | Qantas wants to create a monopoly to extract more money from New Zealand travellers, importers and exporters by becoming a cornerstone shareholder in Air New Zealand. More... | ||||
| Air New Zealand: flog it off | |||||
| 21 Aug 2002 | Politicians are wondering what to do with this failed airline. The Importers Institute has some helpful advice for them: flog it off to the highest bidder, fast. More... | ||||
| Customs Court Cases | |||||
| 19 Aug 2002 | The High Court in Auckland and Wellington recently ruled on two cases of valuation and tariff classification of interest to importers. More... | ||||
| Political Expediency Thwarts Theft | |||||
| 15 Jun 2002 | A plan by 'man of integrity' Jim Anderton to extort $15 million a year from importers has been put on hold. A fee of $18 on every commercial importation was planned to come into force on 1 July. More... | ||||
| Import Tariffs and Double Standards | |||||
| 3 May 2002 | A recent Oxfam report, Rigged Rules and Double Standards, exposes the duplicity of protectionists who want to keep out imports from poorer countries. More... | ||||
| Institute Opposes Anti-Business Tax | |||||
| 15 Apr 2002 | The Importers Institute made a submission to a Parliamentary Select Committee opposing Jim Anderton’s latest anti-business initiative: a new tax of $15 million on importers. More... | ||||
| Importers and the Shipping Industry | |||||
| 11 Apr 2002 | In a speech to a shipping industry conference today, we addressed what importers want, the lessons from airfreight, the effects of price collusion and the consequences of ignoring security. More... | ||||
| Currency Movement Explained | |||||
| 5 Apr 2002 | The New Zealand dollar collapsed when this Government was elected but it went from 41 to 44 US cents in the past few weeks. Could it be because this is election year and speculators are taking an early punt on a possible change of Government? More... | ||||
| Court of Appeal on Tariff Classification | |||||
| 27 Dec 2001 | Customs took a tariff classification dispute to the Court of Appeal and won. The Court confirmed the way in which some basic rules of classification are applied. More... | ||||
| Please let Air New Zealand go under | |||||
| 21 Dec 2001 | The government has sunk hundreds of millions of taxpayers' dollars trying to keep failed airline Air New Zealand afloat. It should let it go under. It is not too late. More... | ||||
| Anderton’s Tax Grab Illegal | |||||
| 13 Nov 2001 | Acting Customs Minister Jim Anderton announced that, from 1 July 2002, a "subsidy reduction" of $18 per import shipment will be levied on all shipments with a value of more than $1,000. More... | ||||
| Anderton Taxes Importers | |||||
| 8 Nov 2001 | Acting Minister of Customs Jim Anderton announced today (8 Nov) in Parliament that a new tax on importers of $16 plus GST will be imposed on every shipment coming to New Zealand. More... | ||||
| Seminar: Introduction to Importing | |||||
| 7 Nov 2001 | The seminar INTRODUCTION TO IMPORTING will be presented by Janette Rodgers in Auckland on Wednesday 21 November, 9am - 12pm. More... | ||||
| Free Trade and Mercantilist Fallacies | |||||
| 5 Oct 2001 | The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade consulted the Importers Institute and other business groups on the proposed free trade agreement between New Zealand and Hong Kong. More... | ||||
| Hold on to those air points! | |||||
| 3 Oct 2001 | The Importers Institute follows the lead of the Prime Minister and issues a 'don't give away' notice for air points on Air New Zealand. More... | ||||
| "Catching the Trade Wave" Conference | |||||
| 5 Sep 2001 | "Catching the Trade Wave," the annual Importers Institute / HSBC Conference, will take place in Auckland on the afternoon of Thursday, 11 October. Mark your diary now. More... | ||||
| New Food Labelling Requirements | |||||
| 14 Aug 2001 | A new Food Code will require more information on labels, from December 2002. From 7 December 2001, there will also be new labelling requirements for genetically modified foods. More... | ||||
| Happy Strikes Are Here Again | |||||
| 20 Jun 2001 | Remember the days of frequent wharf strikes in support of the wharfies' rights to featherbedding? It seems those happy days are here again. More... | ||||
| The Dumb Economy | |||||
| 12 Jun 2001 | Fisher & Paykel used to be held as an example of "the knowledge economy." Finding it hard to compete, it sought - and got - tariff subsidies from government. Welcome to the dumb economy. More... | ||||
| Sea Container Review | |||||
| 29 May 2001 | The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) is going to do a survey of shipping containers to obtain information for a new import health standard. More... | ||||
| Nutters at the Border | |||||
| 28 May 2001 | Hands up those who are against biosecurity. No, I didn't think there would be any. Biosecurity is a no-brainer - everyone agrees on the basic aims. But do they? More... | ||||
| Consumers to Subsidise Fisher & Paykel | |||||
| 3 Apr 2001 | The government is set to deliver a monopoly of the New Zealand whiteware market to Fisher & Paykel. More... | ||||
| Outbreaks of Foot and Mouth and Stupidity | |||||
| 2 Apr 2001 | Foot baths for all passengers from Britain and instant deportation of passengers who do not declare foodstuffs were suggested by people hitherto suspected of having some intelligence. More... | ||||
| A New Defence for Smugglers? | |||||
| 19 Jan 2001 | There may be a new defence against charges of smuggling. If caught, just claim that the rules are too complex. More... | ||||
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