brad olsen

Fast food operator Restaurant Brands says that despite making record sales, it still has major cost issues. 

The operator of KFC, Pizza Hut, Carl's Junior, and Taco Bell has posted $1.3 billion in full-year sales. 

Its net after-tax profit was $15.8 million, down half a million annually. 

Brad Olsen, Infometrics Principal Economist, told Mike Hosking that while spending value was up 4.2% year on year, the volume purchased was down by 2.7%. 

So, he said, you’re spending more, getting less bang for your buck. 

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A challenging time may be coming for retailers. 

Data released by Stats NZ has revealed a 2% fall in December’s spending compared to the month prior.  

Spending on consumables such as groceries experienced the smallest fall at 0.1%, while things such as furniture and clothing are down by 2% and 2.9% respectively. 

Infometrics Principal Economist, Brad Olsen, told Tim Dower that the data reflects that households are being more cautious with their spending. 

He said the 1.6% increase in November was likely caused by early Christmas shopping. 

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Better news for mortgage holders, with Kiwibank the latest bank to cut home loan rates. 

It's also reducing term deposit rates following a decrease in wholesale rates for banks. 

Infometrics Economist Brad Olsen says these lower rates for banks are still not being fully passed on to customers. 

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A push back from the Reserve Bank against the financial markets.

The central bank kept the Official Cash Rate at 5.5% and signalled that no cuts are on the immediate horizon.

It's also kept the door open for another rise if inflation pressures are stronger than anticipated.

Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen told Tim Dower that markets had been getting excited in recent weeks, wondering how quickly they could cut rates.

He says the Reserve Bank doesn't meet for another three months, so leaving that sort of view unchecked and allowed to come through would have been dangerous for them.

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We’re heading in the right direction, but they’re still not great numbers on the trade deficit. 

Stats NZ data for October shows exports fell to $5.4 billion annually, with imports down to just over $7 billion on last year. 

The annual trade deficit is $14.8 billion, slightly better than September's $15.41 billion. 

Infometrics chief economist Brad Olsen told Kate Hawkesby that it's an improvement, but it remains a concern. 

He says we're still importing more than we're exporting. 

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It's widely anticipated that New Zealand's unemployment figures will rise today. 

Stats NZ numbers for the three months to September will be released later this morning. 

Infometrics Principal Economist, Brad Olsen, told Kate Hawkesby that he predicts it will lift from 3.6 to 3.9%. 

He says realistically, the market is still tight, with anything below 4% unusual for New Zealand. 

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ASB is hiking mortgage rates again. 

The bank is lifting its one-year and 18-month rates by 20 basis points, increasing them to 7.45%  and 7.15% respectively. 

It's also raising its two and three-year rates by 16 points, becoming 7.05% and 6.85%. 

This comes at a time when many kiwis are struggling with the cost of living, and banks are reporting high profits. 

In August ASB reported a net profit after tax of $1,550 million for the year ending on the 30th of June 2023, an increase of $132 million from the previous year. 

Infometrics CEO and Principal Economist Brad Olsen told Kerre Woodham that international funding rates such as the 10 Year Bond Rate have been increasing, impacting rates in New Zealand.   

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The Government has unveiled its much-anticipated Budget 2023, with less than five months to go until the country heads to the polls.

Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen and political commentator Josie Pagani join Nick Mills for a special edition of Friday Faceoff to analyse the spending. 

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There's some hope that supplier costs to supermarkets will soon show signs of easing.

The Infometrics-Foodstuffs New Zealand Grocery Supplier Cost Index shows a 10% increase in what suppliers charged supermarkets for goods in April.

We've seen increases of 10% or more for the past six months.

Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen says this reflects suppliers themselves are facing very high input price pressures.

He says we're starting to see some signs of possibly less intense cost pressures, but they are remaining high for now.

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Fantomfacts.com

Brad Olsen joins the show to talk about his recent trip to the Antarctic and how his love from just traveling led him to a discovery of ancient secrets that are going on to this day.  

Bradolsen.com 

If Apple burned down your house, and built you an epic mansion with tons of cool stuff, that'd be pretty cool, right? Wait, no… YOU BURNED DOWN MY HOUSE?! In a nutshell, that's how many passionate, invested Final Cut Pro users felt when Apple rewrote the program for version 10.0, and killed support for version 7.0. Despite new innovations in the software update, many users felt betrayed or abandoned when Apple initiated this harsh transition. Today, on the 10th anniversary, we'll talk about the Final Cut Pro X launch: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Oh yeah… the drama brewed so much that a documentary was made about it (link below)!

Subscribe today so you don't miss a new episode! New episodes come out every other Monday morning (6:00 AM CT) so your Monday can be a funday!

Special thanks to our friends at Linode for making this podcast possible! If you need cloud computing solutions, then you need Linode. Grab your $100 in free credit at https://linode.com/computerclan - If it runs on Linux, it runs on Linode!

4:29 - Final Cut Backstory
15:56 - NAB 2011 Buildup
20:57 - Final Cut Pro X Announcement
24:06 - Final Cut Pro X Interface & Features
42:16 - Final Cut Pro X Live Demo
45:49 - Final Cut Pro X Release and Price
51:11 - Event Aftermath
54:26 - Brad Olsen's First Experience with Final Cut Pro X
56:53 - Final Cut Pro X Missing Features
1:01:40 - Final Cut Pro X Weird Bits & Glitches
1:10:58 - Other Final Cut Pro X Tidbits and the Future
1:17:01 - Conclusion

Brad's Amazing Off the Tracks Documentary: https://offthetracksmovie.com

Brad's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/offthetracksmovie

Final Cut Pro X at SuperMeet: https://youtu.be/qOGWxd8c4Ng

Final Cut Pro Screenshots: http://bit.ly/clan35Cc82j

Purchases via our sponsor and affiliate links help support the Computer Clan YouTube channel and this podcast. Thank you.

Episode Transcription: https://thecomputerclan.com/transcriptions/AppleKeynoteChronicles-005.pdf

Brad Olsen is the author of ten books, including three in his Esoteric Series: “Modern Esoteric”  “Future Esoteric” and “Beyond Esoteric.” An award-winning author, public speaker, YouTube content creator of the “Esoteric Circle,” book publisher and event producer. Brad Olsen has been on dozens of radio shows (including Coast to Coast, Fade to Black, and Ground Zero) and television shows (including Ancient Aliens, America Unearthed, and Mysteries of the Outdoors).
bradolsen.com