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New research has found rising profits have contributed to over half of domestic inflation in New Zealand during the cost of living crisis, according to a new report by FIRST Union, the Council of Trade Unions and lobby group Action Station.
It argues that contrary to the public narrative, rising wages are only responsible for less than a third of domestic inflation, over the 18 months to December last year.
The report says corporations seized the opportunity to increase their profit margins off the back of major struggles; most notably the Covid-19 pandemic, and severe weather events like Cyclone Gabrielle.
Kathryn speaks with Edward Miller, a researcher and policy analyst at FIRST Union.
In an earlier report published last year, he calculated that corporate profits spiked by 39 per cent in the year to March 2022, which he described as "the biggest increase ever seen".
