The importance the Hon. John Key, Prime Minister of New Zealand places on Asia, and specifically China, was again illustrated as the he completed his Asian tour with an address at the special Kea Business Breakfast in Shanghai on the 9th of July.
 
The demographics of the audience - a mixture of Kea members and strategic Chinese clients of Kea members – further enhanced the uniqueness of the event where the Prime Minister was candid about a range of topics, from the Vuvuzela's impact at the Soccer World Cup, the state of New Zealand's healthcare, tax reform, and New Zealand's openness to strategic investment from China.
 
It was evident from the Prime Minister’s address that New Zealand has feared comparably well in the financial crisis, largely due to the strength of our banking system and the robustness of the Chinese and Australian economies. But some weaknesses still remain that could curtail long-term sustained economic growth.  The major weaknesses raised by the Prime Minister was New Zealand's aging economy and the stress this will place on the New Zealand Government, the economy and the relatively high levels of personal debt in New Zealand, which is at the upper end of the OECD average.
 
The underlying themes of the Prime Minister’s address was therefore to discuss how the tax reform, recently released in the May Budget, is aimed at attracting highly mobile and talented individuals back to New Zealand to improve productivity and how China will play a large part in New Zealand's economic growth, provided investment is directed into strategic sectors.
 
The event culminated in an informative Q&A session and in typical Kea fashion, the opportunity for Kea and non-Kea members to network and continually develop new business relationships.

Pictured above right: Rachel McGuigan (Regional Manager, Kea China), Hon John Key (Prime Minister, New Zealand), Sharon Fraser (Chair, Kea China Advisory Board), Carl Worker (NZ Ambassador, China) and Michael Swain (Consul-General).

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