New Zealand and Australia should adopt a joint Anzac currency, Auckland University economist Professor Tim Hazledine said yesterday.
He told the University of Otago's latest Foreign Policy School, devoted to transtasman relations, that New Zealand was the smallest OECD country to have a fully independent monetary policy. In his view, the country should say "good riddance" to that dubious status.
Both countries would gain significant economic benefits by reducing the big transaction costs required in transtasman trading, he said.
Professor Hazledine said he favoured developing a new joint currency, the "Anzac," which would require a federal reserve board.
It was too negative to simply assume that Australia would insist on the Australian currency being adopted, he said. A federal board could also provide benefits for the respective Australian states, giving them more scope for input.
- NZPA
Anzac currency best option, says professor
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