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The Kiwi dollar dropped to a significant 2.5 year low last week against the greenback, sinking to 64.26 US cents on the back of rising US interest rates and weak domestic data. While the dollar has seen a spirited rise since then, coming back to its mid-September levels, many experts are forecasting the Kiwi to fall even further in the weeks and months ahead. How low the Kiwi goes will depend on US-China trade tensions, the health of the domestic economy, and whether or not the market has fully priced in the Federal Reserve's tightening cycle.

As the years roll by and the wrinkles start to develop, we have more to look back on but less faculty for doing so. While decreasing memory as we get older might seem like one of life's tricks, there are lots of things we can do to improve our recall and upgrade our state of mind. Memory is a complicated process that’s made up of numerous brain activities, which means this task can be tackled in a few different ways.

The world of fine art is shrouded in mystery, especially when it comes to the top end of the market. While most of the world's famous masterpieces are owned by museums in Europe and rarely sold, there is an active private auction market for some high profile works. In order to determine the value of a piece of art, it's important to differentiate between museum paintings and those owned by private collectors. While old master works in museums are valued extremely high, most of them will never be available for private sale.

New Zealand households, like much of the world, are struggling with unsustainable levels of debt. While the New Zealand economy is in pretty good shape, the household debt to income ratio has risen from less than 60 percent in the early 1990s to 166 percent today. While it's yet to exceed the all-time high of 166.2 percent recorded in the second quarter of 2017, the ratio is stabilising rather than retreating. The situation in New Zealand mirrors what's happening in the rest of the world, with global debt levels higher today than they were during the credit crisis of 2008. 

The Government continues its attempt to unlock affordable housing across New Zealand, with homes from the KiwiBuild scheme already on the block in Auckland and new plans to build 10,000 homes as part of the Mt Roskill redevelopment project. All in all, the Government has committed $2 billion for KiwiBuild, as it aims to deliver 100,000 "modest starter" homes for first-home buyers over the next decade. The private sector is also starting to join the party, with ASB set to provide 95 percent housing loans to qualified KiwiBuild buyers.