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Fiona Cooper: NZUS Council Executive Director on today's US Business Summit · Best of Business

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: You're listening to a podcast from News Talk zed B.
• 0:12
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• 0:16
  Speaker 2: We've got the United States Business Summit meeting today. Policymakers, diplomats,
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: business heavyweights, all that sort of stuff. They talk trade in,
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: tariffs and commercial opportunities. US a big deal, still second
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: largest export market, over thirty billion dollars worth of business.
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: Fiona Cooper, executive director of the NZ United States Councilors
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  Speaker 2: with US Fiona.
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  Speaker 3: Good morning, Good morning mate.
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: When you gather together New Zealanders and Americans, are these
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  Speaker 2: unusual times or business as usual or somewhere in between.
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  Speaker 3: These are new times. These are different times. And that's
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  Speaker 3: why the theme of the event today is America's new playbook.
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  Speaker 3: You know, we're all adjusting to America's new rules of
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  Speaker 3: the game for international trade.
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  Speaker 2: The tariff's story, how is it a good story? A
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  Speaker 2: negative story? Who was still trying to work it out?
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  Speaker 3: Well, a year ago, we were all terribly worried about
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  Speaker 3: what was in store, and certainly it has been a
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  Speaker 3: real challenge for a lot of our sector. But nonetheless,
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  Speaker 3: for many products, prices are holding up in the United
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  Speaker 3: States and their strong demand so perhaps the impact hasn't
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  Speaker 3: been as bad for every sector as we had feared.
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  Speaker 2: Is there still some stuff to come through on that though?
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  Speaker 2: Is there still some information to come through on that
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  Speaker 2: or we don't know?
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  Speaker 3: Oh, for sure there is. It will be interesting to see,
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  Speaker 3: you know, how the trade stats are looking in the
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  Speaker 3: new year to see what the impact has been. And
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  Speaker 3: of course we're all waiting to see what the Supreme
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  Speaker 3: Court says about the legality of these reciprocal tariffs, so
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  Speaker 3: that could change things again. Although nobody I think is
• 1:47
  Speaker 3: expecting tariffs to disappear completely. They'll find another way if
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  Speaker 3: the current tariff structure is not permitted.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, what's the view on America? I mean, a lot
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  Speaker 2: of countries are looking for alternative markets if it gets
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  Speaker 2: too complicated. Are we in that or not?
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  Speaker 3: Well, you know, every company makes decisions about where to
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  Speaker 3: place its product. But the fact is the US is
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  Speaker 3: a huge and very lucrative market. That's why it's one
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  Speaker 3: about top trading partners and we're doing great business there.
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  Speaker 3: And so I think today is about sharing stories around
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  Speaker 3: how we navigate this tariff turbulence, but at the same
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  Speaker 3: time sees those opportunities in technology investment, education, aerospace, agribusiness,
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  Speaker 3: you name it. There's still tons of opportunity in the USA.
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  Speaker 2: You make a very good point because so much focus
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  Speaker 2: is on things like beef. How much I mean you
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  Speaker 2: talk about tech. Where are the growth areas outside of
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  Speaker 2: US growing food for Americans?
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  Speaker 3: Well, you know, we do a great business in exporting
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  Speaker 3: machinery to the United States. So a lot of New
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  Speaker 3: Zealand's high tech stuff is contributing to US supply chains
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  Speaker 3: and that's going very well. So I think the tech sector,
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  Speaker 3: the services sector is going absolute gangbusters in the United States.
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  Speaker 3: Fantastic business there. It's our largest services market. So, as
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  Speaker 3: I say this, tons of opportunity, but we have to
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  Speaker 3: at the same time as navigating these new challenges.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, the uncertainty is interesting, isn't it. Fianna appreciate it.
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  Speaker 2: Executive Director of the New Zealand United States Council, Fiona
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  Speaker 2: Cooper with us
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