5 Feb 2018

Investors confident about the year ahead

6:32 pm on 5 February 2018

Investors still prefer property - along with term deposits - and are expecting steady returns again in the year ahead.

A man with a calculator inspects a line of houses stacked on top of gold coins.

Photo: 123RF

ASB Bank's latest survey shows confidence is steady, with a net 20 percent positive in the three months to December, up a touch on the previous quarter.

The result was driven by a big rise in confidence in Canterbury and an impressive quarter for sharemarkets here and throughout the world.

ASB senior wealth economist Chris Tennent-Brown said there was nothing on the horizon in the near-term to spook investors.

"The level of confidence revealed in this survey indicates strong returns can eclipse worries such as those around the political climate," he said.

Thirty-one percent expect better investment returns over the year ahead, while 42 percent expect the same.

Mr Tennent-Brown added that property and term deposits were still popular, despite uncertainty about the housing market and low interest rates.

"A moderation in confidence regarding housing is being seen in Auckland as well as the rest of the country," he said.

He said there were several uncertainties about the housing market.

"House prices are high, LVR restrictions have been tweaked but are still restrictive, and the uncertainty of an upcoming tax review all cloud the picture ... changes to the rules that impact foreign property buyers are another area of uncertainty that will be influencing perceptions," he said.

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs