90 at 9: Kiwi dollar flies high; NAB capital raising; English speech due

Bernard Hickey delivers the key news overnight in 90 seconds at 9am in association with ASB, including news the New Zealand dollar held above 66 USc overnight. There's confidence about the economic outlook which helped 'commodity currencies' like the Australian dollar, the New Zealand dollar and the Canadian dollar strengthen.

Meanwhile in the United States, there were more profit warnings overnight linked to the bust in the commercial property market as shops empty out and businesses close. Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo warned about big losses in commercial property, the FT reported. Over in Australia, National Australia Bank has announced plans to raise A$2.75 billion to strengthen its balance sheet. It also said this was linked to potential provisions due to BNZ's recent loss in its tax case. BNZ meanwhile saw more overdue debts in the June quarter

Finally, Bill English will give a big speech at midday. Yesterday he mentioned interest.co.nz in parliament, saying the public should visit our site to find out what's happening with interest rates.

"Members of the general public can look at the interest rate picture by going to www.interest.co.nz and looking at the updated rates—they are updated every 6 minutes—and can make up their own minds about it," English told parliament. "An MPs inquiry will make no difference. The member should be talking about the real issue, which is what combination of regulatory supervision will ensure that the banks do not make excessive profits. I welcome any contribution that the Opposition caucus would like to make to that debate, rather than these stunts and grandstanding."

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