The RBNZ is cutting rates again, and here are 5 ASX stocks (based in New Zealand) that could benefit

Last week, we heard that the RBNZ is cutting rates again. If you thought Australia’s economy was not doing well, you clearly have not been following what has been happening across the Ditch.

Like Australia, Aotearoa entered a recession during the pandemic but had another one in 2023 and is one more negative quarter away from another in 2025 with (0.9%) ‘growth’ in Q3 of 2025. Business confidence and productivity is weak to an extent not seen in Australia. Housing prices have fallen up to 20% in some areas of the country, impacting household wealth and construction activity. The Kiwi dollar is weak vs other currencies: at 57 US cents and 88 Australian cents. And there are far more people leaving the country than coming in.

After rates peaked at over 5%, the RBNZ has reduced rates to 2.5% with an 0.5% cut announced last week. The downward move was not unexpected, but the 0.5% move was a shock. Economists, led by Kiwibank’s Jarrod Kerr, declared this was what the country needed and would inject stimulus. If this is the case, the ASX stocks with exposure to New Zealand could benefit. Let’s take a look at 5.

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5 ASX stocks that could win now that the RBNZ is cutting rates again

ANZ (ASX:ANZ)

All of the Big 4 Banks have exposure to New Zealand, whether they are in New Zealand under their own brand names or subsidiaries (i.e. CBA is known as ASB). But ANZ’s exposure to New Zealand is relatively stronger than its peers. What do we mean by exposure? Well, in its most recent Pillar 3 disclosures, 16.7% of its credit exposure was from its NZ subsidiaries.

Now we will admit it is harder to prove ‘the exposure is higher’ at face value because the other banks ‘hide’ New Zealand exposure in subsidiaries or do not publish NZ figures at all, but none are as high at 16.7%. We think rate cuts in New Zealand will be good for all of the banks, but particularly for ANZ, as it will reduce the likelihood of defaults and boost demand for credit.

Spark (ASX:SPK)

Spark is one of New Zealand’s major telcos and it has been bearing the brunt of the weak New Zealand economy. Even though it has over half the country as customers, New Zealanders can and do shop around for bargains in tough times. Spark customers have been downgrading to lower priced plans with Spark or switching telcos.

Justine Smyth, the soon to be succeeded chair of the company, has not shied away from the fact that weak conditions were impacting the company. She declared last October,’ We were experiencing one of the longest and deepest recessionary periods in recent history’, and that even 4 months afterwards,’ We have seen no improvement in these conditions, and while there has been movement on monetary policy, this is yet to flow through to any meaningful change in consumer or business spending’.

The company’s 1H25 results showed little signs of improvement, neither did its full-year results. Even though the company spruiked to investors an ‘FY30 strategy’, it is difficult to see success if the economy remains a basket case…but rate cuts could help.

Briscoe (ASX:BGP)

Briscoe is a retailer focused on homeware and sporting goods. It runs nearly 50 stores under its own brand and the Rebel Sport brand in New Zealand, which amount to more than 40 additional stores. Many Australian investors following retail stocks would have seen some (but not all) bear the brunt of the ‘cost of living crisis’. This is the case too with Briscoe across the Ditch.

Briscoe reported an 11% drop in profit to NZ$29m for the year ended January 2025, despite ‘near-record sales’. As with Spark, company executives admitted it was a tough environment, and this was impacting sales and profitability. Case in point: Earlier in 2025, this author was in New Zealand and was able to buy 2 pairs of sneakers for just A$70 each and even had a Rebel utility bag thrown in for free. If economic conditions recover, things might get better for Briscoe.

Fletcher Building (ASX:FBU)

This is one of New Zealand’s largest building & materials firms; involved in supplying building products, executing large construction projects, and infrastructure. In its most recent fiscal year, the company recorded NZ$7bn in revenue, but made a net loss of over NZ$400m. It has announced hundreds of millions in restructuring and impairment costs as it seeks to turn around its business.

Fletcher has warned of a 10–15% drop in materials distribution business volumes in the upcoming year. Adding insult to injury, there is a legal dispute with SkyCity over the NZ International Convention Centre (NZICC) project, which has delayed timelines and added uncertainty. As construction is largely financed by debt, we would imagine a reduction in interest rates in New Zealand would be a boost for the company.

Sky Network Television (ASX:SKT)

Sky Network Television operates a pay-TV and entertainment business. When people cut back on spending, discretionary comes first and streaming is discretionary especially if users have multiple providers. At the same time, so does business spending on advertising which is a major source of revenue for SKT.

Recently, Sky has acquired Discovery NZ (which includes free-to-air channel Three and streaming operations) for NZ$1 on a cash-free, debt-free basis. This is a step to diversify revenue and reach. The acquisition strategy suggests it sees opportunity (or necessity) to expand its footprint; either it sees the economy turning around, or an opportunity to succeed in spite of a weak economy.