Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

We are in for a bunch of cost increases over the next few weeks. I know, more. It’s not like we haven’t been facing a steady stream of rising costs for a while already, but a couple of things are coming up to bite us. One, the Government’s petrol subsidy is coming to an end this Saturday, which’ll see petrol prices jump by 29 cents a litre. That’s a lot, and it’ll hit hard in a cost of living crisis. Not just in our tanks, but it’ll be passed on across the board in terms of transport and logistics for pretty much everything we buy. Two, fruit and veges. That’s been rising steadily too, in fact food inflation is at its highest level in 36 years, according to a recent report. “Stats NZ’s food price index rose 12.5 percent in the year ended April, the highest annual rate since late 1987. The main drivers over the year were a 14 percent rise in grocery prices, and more than 22 percent for fruit and vegetables prices,” the report said - more than 22 percent.   That’s huge, and we know it because we see it in our t