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Speaker 1: Now it's another tough six months for Main Freight. The

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Speaker 1: logistics business has posted a net profit after tax of

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Speaker 1: ninety three million dollars for the half year. That's down

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Speaker 1: eighteen and a half percent, and the company's operations and

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Speaker 1: the Americas have performed poorly, making a loss of two

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Speaker 1: point three million dollars. Don Braid is Main Freight's group

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Speaker 1: managing director. Hey Don, Hey, Heather, how are you very well?

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Speaker 1: Thank you? So what are the challenges you've been facing here?

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Speaker 2: Oh? All sorts are you know?

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Speaker 3: We have had a tough start to the year in

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Speaker 3: the first quarter, and that result that we've produced for

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Speaker 3: the half year is actually better.

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Speaker 4: Than what we saw in the first quarter that we

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Speaker 4: announced at the AGM. So it's improving and we certainly

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Speaker 4: feel a lot more boor into about what's in front

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Speaker 4: of us and an amount of market share gains, customers

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Speaker 4: sending more with us around the world, So we feel

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Speaker 4: a bit more positive as we head into the second

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Speaker 4: six months.

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Speaker 1: So do you think things are going to get better

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Speaker 1: from here? You seeing signs of that.

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Speaker 2: We are definitely with established customers sending more, spending more

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Speaker 2: with us, and market share gains of of our own

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Speaker 2: violation where we're winning business across the network.

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Speaker 1: What do you think is going on with our attitude

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Speaker 1: towards tariff so we largely ignoring it?

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Speaker 2: Well, my advice, I had the opportunity to be in

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Speaker 2: the US in the last three weeks, and my advice

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Speaker 2: to some of those people New Zealandy exporters who were

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Speaker 2: complaining about the fifteen percent, wanting it to be ten percent,

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Speaker 2: The reality is it's fifteen Get on with it, Increase

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Speaker 2: your pricing accordingly, and that's the game you're going to

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Speaker 2: have to play.

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Speaker 1: Have they followed your advice?

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Speaker 2: I'm not sure. I'm not sure there should be well

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Speaker 2: advised to do that either, and I'm not sure it's

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Speaker 2: that easy. But I do think that we are overly

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Speaker 2: fixated on it and it is the way the world

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Speaker 2: these days, so accept it.

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Speaker 1: And that hoarding that was going on don at the

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Speaker 1: start ahead of the tariff's kicking in, where people were

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Speaker 1: sending just a whole bunch out ware housing. It has

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Speaker 1: that now ended.

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Speaker 2: And there's still plenty of stock around. But certainly I

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Speaker 2: think what's happened overall is the nervousness of the tariff situation.

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Speaker 2: There's some sort of sensibility to whatever the tariffs are

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Speaker 2: going to be. Even this last session that they've had

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Speaker 2: with China, they've settled on a set of tariffs for

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Speaker 2: the next twelve months. That's giving people some confidence. So

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Speaker 2: they're getting on and doing business. Isn't amal now?

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Speaker 1: I mean, because you operate in various parts of the world,

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Speaker 1: it gives you a really great view of what is

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Speaker 1: going on in our economy. What are you seeing here

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Speaker 1: in New Zealand? How are we going?

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Speaker 2: It's better and it's got better, and certainly the last

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Speaker 2: couple of months and you know, the dark depths of

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Speaker 2: winter have definitely disappeared behind us, and we're seeing our

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Speaker 2: customers feeling more positive and sending more for it.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, a big difference. Now, do you have a view

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Speaker 1: on the debate about the Ports of Auckland hiking the fees?

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Speaker 2: Well, I do. Whether I want to share that with you,

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Speaker 2: I'm not sure. But what I would urge the Ports

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Speaker 2: of Auckland to do is that this will be further

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Speaker 2: imposs on exporters and importers. However, I urge them to

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Speaker 2: think about a multimodal approach rather than just a trucking approach.

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Speaker 2: And I think they're far too geared towards moving freight

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Speaker 2: on trucks rather than actually using rail off the port

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Speaker 2: and onto the port.

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Speaker 1: Interesting don't always got to talk to you. Thank you

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Speaker 1: so much for your time, mate. That's Don Braid, Main

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Speaker 1: Freight Group Managing Director. For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive,

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Speaker 1: listen live to news talks. It'd be from four pm weekdays,

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