Australasia

Metal merchants in both Australia and New Zealand seem to be providing consistent sentiment - a reflection of how these two countries’ economies are closely linked.

Competition remains firm, with concerns about changing/slowing supply owing to the wider geopolitical issues and its flow-on effect into both economies. Consumers continue to focus on security of supply and are buying in the current market.

The Australian government is using more mechanisms to reduce fuel costings to consumers, including reducing the excise duty which benefits all Australians. New Zealand has introduced measures too, although only for lower-income households; the risk with this approach is that the New Zealand economy will slow down quicker, with higher inflationary pressure. It will be interesting to see how both markets’ positioning pays off in the coming months.

Fuel security is similar in Australia and New Zealand, with both countries having 30 to 40 days’ supply at the time of writing. With one of the two oil refineries in Australia suffering a fire in recent days, both governments will no doubt be trying to improve fuel security going forward. There is talk of a potential bi-country buying partnership to ease fuel security pressure, which can’t come quickly enough for consumers.