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Business leaders have given their verdict on the Government in the Herald’s Mood of the Boardroom survey and it’s not pretty. 

In fact, the country’s top chief executives and directors have handed out a brutal assessment of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Finance Minister Nicola Willis. 

Neither is ranked in the top 10 in this year’s Cabinet ratings. 

Luxon scored an average of 2.96/5 on a scale running from one, “not impressive”, to five, “very impressive”. That ranked him 15th among Cabinet ministers. 

Willis scored 3.09/5 for a ranking of 13. 

The Herald’s Mood of the Boardroom chief executive survey attracted participation from 150 respondents. 

These included chief executives from 125 of New Zealand’s biggest companies, ranging across agribusiness, banking and finance, manufacturing, aviation and tourism, education, telecommunications, environmental services, energy, insurance, professional services and more. 

The survey was in the market from August 15 to September 12. 

It showed that business leaders’ optimism in the economy has waned from last year’s nine-year high. 

Respondents rated their confidence in the New Zealand economy at 2.81/5 on a scale of 1-5, where 1 signifies “much less optimistic” than a year ago and 5 represents “much more optimistic”. That is down from last year’s score of 3.23/5. 

The softer outlook reflected a fragile domestic recovery that has been overshadowed by both global trade uncertainty and lingering weakness in consumer confidence. 

“Confidence is gradually, almost reluctantly, improving locally, but uncertainty caused by US tariffs and geopolitics is allowing us to hang on to our newly ingrained pessimism,” said Employers and Manufacturers Association chief executive John Fraser-Mackenzie. 

Others highlight that although the agribusiness sector is doing well, the traditional link between high dairy payouts and wider domestic confidence is yet to be seen in the current business environment. 

“Consumer confidence remains very subdued and, while we are seeing recovery first in the regions, it is not at the pace one would expect given the dairy payouts that historically provide the stimulus,” said Mitre 10 New Zealand boss Andrea Scown. “Our own customer insights point to a savings mindset. Folk don’t feel out of the woods yet.” 

Meanwhile, a strong majority of business leaders back the Reserve Bank cutting interest rates further to support the economy. In the survey, 78% say the official cash rate (OCR) should continue to fall, while just 11% oppose further cuts and 11% are unsure.