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Fran O'Sullivan: NZ Inc Managing Director on the US Business Summit, tariffs · The SME Stream

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: The United States Business Summit is taking place in Auckland
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: today and boys at timely Trump obviously on his way
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: in tariff's looming and the US overtaking the Aussies as
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: our second largest export market worth more than fourteen billion dollars.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: Fran O'Sullivan is the US Business Summit co chair. She's
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: with us this morning. Friend, lovely to have you on
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: the show.
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: Oh, thank you.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: Tell me what's your pack on this whole tariff business?
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: Is this a negotiating tactic from Trump? Do you think
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: he's actually going to go ahead with them in any
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: know the numbers that they're talking about.
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: Oh, there will be an element of negotiation about it.
• 0:34
  Speaker 2: And I think you only have to look to his
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: pickers Commerce secretary, who is a billionaire, Harold Lutnik, who
• 0:41
  Speaker 2: was also co chair of his campaign. He has been
• 0:46
  Speaker 2: on record talking about tariff all the way through the
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: campaign himself. He's also the boss of brokerage firm Cantor
• 0:56
  Speaker 2: in the United States, So I mean he's a man
• 0:58
  Speaker 2: with considerable sway. But what he is also suggested that
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: there will be an element of negotiation around some of
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: these and that in fact he is wanting to get
• 1:09
  Speaker 2: obviously people back into and companies back manufacturing in the
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: United States. But however, there won't be blanket tariffs on everything,
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: so punitive language all the rest. But part of that is,
• 1:24
  Speaker 2: you know, perhaps the first steps in a pretty high
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: stakes poker game. Yeah.
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: I saw his comments action in the Wall Street Journal overnight,
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: and you know he's talking about countries will have to
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: make concessions. You know, what's correct, What sort of concessions
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: do we make?
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: Well, there's probably been a bit of pressure. Well that
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: may or may not be a priority for the incoming administration.
• 1:47
  Speaker 2: I mean it's not it wasn't initiated by them. I
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: think at the moment, you know, we have ponied up
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: and become much more in tune with the United States,
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: particularly the Pacific, and I think there'll be an expectation
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: that we continue to do that. And when you look
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: at the leverage that's been applied in the past, for
• 2:07
  Speaker 2: instance by President Trump and Trump one point zero iteration,
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: I mean at that time he did put considerable pressure
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: on NATO, for instance, to step up its defense spend.
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: I think we will come under pressure to do more
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: of that. But that's happening anyway. The big big areas
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: where the government will be wanting to you know, can't
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: spell out to the administration. And I think some of
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: this was probably also covered in the conversation that the
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: Prime Minister had with Donald Trump several days after he
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: was he became President elect. So you know, there are commonalities,
• 2:45
  Speaker 2: there are areas where we are working with the United
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: States strategically, and he will want to keep emphasizing that.
• 2:52
  Speaker 2: But you know it's going to be interesting. And of course,
• 2:56
  Speaker 2: of China takes the major hit, that's a major trading
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: partner of New Zealand, and so if it's a Connomy
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: takes a hit, people won't want to pay quite the
• 3:06
  Speaker 2: same price as they're paying now for New Zealand goods.
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: So you know, it's the world could get quite a slap,
• 3:13
  Speaker 2: and that is something that you're seeing, for instance at
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: the D twenty just in previous days, much more circling
• 3:21
  Speaker 2: around Jijenping. He's become a very powerful player as well
• 3:24
  Speaker 2: in all of this. Yeah.
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: Absolutely, and still waiting to see quite how big that
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: stimulus might be from Beijing as well. Friend, fascinating an
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: excellent analysis. Has always enjoyed the summit today, Thank you
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: very much. Thank you freend O Sullivan who is the
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: New Zealand business sorry, the US Business Summit coach here
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: that's on in Auckland today