Inflation falls to 2.2%, international nurses in New Zealand say they’re in crisis, and Donald Trump dances on stage for almost half an hour.
1 Inflation falls to 2.2%, now within the Reserve Bank’s target
Inflation has fallen to 2.2%, bringing it into the Reserve Bank's target range for the first time in more than three years.
Stats NZ announced the figure for the three months to September today. It comes a week after the Reserve Bank cut the Official Cash Rate by 0.5% as it believed inflation was coming under control.
"For the first time since March 2021, annual inflation is within the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's target band of 1 to 3%. Prices are still rising, but not as much as previously recorded," Stats NZ's consumer prices manager Nicola Growden said.
Higher rent was the biggest contributor to the annual inflation rate, up 4.5%, with almost a fifth of the 2.2% annual increase in the Consumer Price Index being due to rent prices.
2 Why international nurses are struggling to find a job in NZ
Nurses in New Zealand say they’re in crisis.
There are those working in hospitals and health centres who say they’ve nothing more to give.
There are brand new nurses, who never imagined it would be such a struggle to get a job.
And then, there are those who listened to New Zealand’s call for nurses, only to arrive and find few employers are willing to hire them.
1News reporter Corazon Miller crunches the numbers to see why many international nurses say they can’t find work despite a health sector crying out for more labour.
3 Police Commissioner apologises to Alan Hall
The Police Commissioner has apologised to Alan Hall for "shortcomings in the investigation" that saw him wrongly convicted of murder in 1985.
In a statement today, Andrew Coster said he met with Alan Hall and apologised on behalf of the New Zealand police for "shortcomings in our original investigation that led to his wrong conviction".
Alan Hall was wrongfully imprisoned for 19 years after being convicted in 1985 for the murder of Arthur Easton.
4 'He wasn't blind': Manslaughter trial over meth-laced beer death
Opening statements began in the manslaughter trial of a man after a 21-year-old died after he innocently drank from a can of "Honey Bear House Beer" — not knowing it was laced with liquid methamphetamine.
Himatjit Singh Kahlon, 41, faces one charge of manslaughter, one charge of possessing meth for supply, and one charge of possessing cocaine for supply. He has pleaded not guilty.
In the dock today, wearing a brown houndstooth jacket, Kahlon sat and watched.
The jury trial has been set down for three weeks.
5 Trump town hall event: 'Let's just listen to music'
A campaign event for Donald Trump took a different turn yesterday after the former president spent over 30 minutes swaying, dancing and bopping to his favourite songs on stage.
"Let's not do any more questions. Let's just listen to music. Let's make it into a music. Who the hell wants to hear questions, right?" he said.
The nine-song playlist then started, which was filled with the usual songs that are played at Trump's rallies.
It included James Brown’s It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World, the Village People’s YMCA, Nothing Compares 2 U by Sinead O’Connor, and Luciano Pavarotti’s rendition of Ave Maria.
ONE FOR BLUEY FANS
For the first time, the Bluey stage show is coming to New Zealand.
The production will arrive in April 2025 and will perform in Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington, Hamilton and Auckland.
It is based on an original new story written by creator Joe Brumm, and will bring the Bluey family — including her younger sister Bingo and mum and dad — to live audiences.
MYSTERIOUS 'DARK SPHERES'
People are being urged to avoid an eastern Sydney beach after it became dotted with mysterious ball-shaped debris.
Randwick City Council said lifeguards at Coogee Beach found the unexplained globules on Tuesday afternoon and announced the beach would be closed until further notice.
"Council is investigating the origin and composition of the material, which has the appearance of dark spheres," local authorities said in a statement.
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