KEY POINTS:
Welcome to the first of a three part series on Money and You, which sets out to explain your relationship with money at a personal, business and national level.
In Part One, we look at all you need to know about money at the most fundamental level. From where the first coins were minted, to when the first ATM was installed in New Zealand. We give you the scoop on the biggest and smallest economies of the world and we explain the recent events which have made us anxious to keep hold of our money; the people who are trying to protect our money; and those who would like to do some experimenting with our money.
In our feature on banks, we look at the main services they provide, how they make money with our money and give tips on how to pay off that mortgage as fast as possible. We also look at how credit unions fit into the picture.
In Part Two tomorrow, we look at how business works whether you are operating in the big time on the stock market or in the spare rooms of New Zealand homes. And how to equip yourself to go from the small time to the big time. We also look at that sideline business beloved by many New Zealanders: property investment.
In our final of this series, Part Three, we explore everything you ought to know about the economy now and then, and then how our individual spending decisions affect the whole. We chart when we were one of the wealthiest countries in the OECD and put the spotlight on our increasingly important trade partners as the world's focus turns away from the established players of the West.
