Were you surprised? Do you care? Another 1.5 per cent has been wiped off your rate of return in those dull, dependable and perennially popular bank savings and term deposit accounts.
This is all in the interests of averting depression and who could argue with that cause.
AsAlan Bollard intimated this week when carving 150 basis points (or bips) off the official cash rate bringing it to the historical low of 3.5 per cent, the world economy looks stuffed and we're going to stimulate ourselves back to life.
OK, he really said there is a "huge uncertainty about the timing and strength of a recovery" and lower interest rates might perk NZ up as long as we all keep spending but Reserve Bank governors have to maintain a level of decorum in their public statements.
But in colloquial terms, Bollard's message is 'here's 150 bips, consider yourself stimulated, get spending'.
As usual, it is those careful and conservative savers who will bear some of the cost of this stimulation. As one financial adviser told me this week: there will be a lot of unhappy clients this year, even those who have gone to cash.
With cash predicted by some to flirt with zero, even the most stolid of investors will eventually be forced to seek return in riskier assets. Right now the consensus amongst the advisers and fund managers I talk to is that corporate bonds are likely to fill that, riskier, yield-giving role.
Many companies - both here and offshore - are now raising debt directly from the public with advertised yields of 7-8 per cent. In many respects this is a return to the finance company model - albeit that the underlying investment should be a little more transparent.
But the same rules that investors ignored with finance companies apply to corporate bonds - understand what the investment is and what the risks are. Most corporate bonds in NZ are placed through brokers and advisory firms so you should be getting some advice with that investment.
If you don't or you're not happy with it - find someone else to help you with your corporate bond selection and pay them for it.
