New Zealand boosts movie production incentives amid Trump's tariffs

The New Zealand Government has promised to continue paying international filmmakers billions of dollars worth of incentives despite President Trump's threat to impose 100 percent tariffs on foreign-made movies.

New Zealand has become famous as the shooting ground for blockbuster productions like Lord of the Rings and Avatar. This year's release of A Minecraft Movie was the latest to receive subsidies, which play a crucial role in supporting the local film industry. These subsidies can refund up to 25 cents in the dollar for production costs.

"Last year was our biggest year ever, and we had some of our biggest productions ever. So obviously, we're very keen for that to continue," Matt Horrocks, manager for Screen Auckland.

Minecraft created over one thousand jobs and led to new investment, including the creative hub in West Auckland that provides training opportunities and career pathways for indigenous Maori seeking work in the creative sector.

"I think the opportunities are just limited by our imagination. So we are teaching people how to use state-of-the-art technology, so then they can go out into the industry with up-to-date knowledge," said Robin Taua-Gordon, Co-Chair for Te Puna Creative Innovation Quarter, a creativity hub in west Auckland.

Over the past decade, New Zealand has attracted eight major Hollywood productions by offering 1.5 billion New Zealand dollars in subsidies. Now, the government has decided to increase that funding by an additional billion dollars over the next four years.

New Zealand's screen sector employs about 24 thousand people and generates annual revenue of 3.5 billion dollars, so the increased subsidies are welcome news in the country's business community.

"The screen industry in New Zealand is very healthy and we know that international productions enjoy coming here, the confidence that they can have now that the rebate is sustained and increased is really important," said Pam Ford, head of business development for Tataki Auckland, an economic development agency.

There's little doubt that the film incentives have delivered strong returns. The government says that for every dollar spent on movie subsidies, foreign film companies have invested an additional 5 dollars in New Zealand, injecting a total of 7.5 billion dollars into the economy over the past ten years.

Meanwhile, successful productions like Minecraft help cement New Zealand's reputation in the film industry.

"It really positions us as a creative hub of world-class quality," said Horrocks.

However, U.S. President Donald Trump's threat of retaliation against foreign-made U.S. movies has cast a shadow over the screen industry, risking the destabilization of New Zealand's movie industry.

"I think the whole world is looking at what will happen. It's certainly too early to tell what the impact might be in the screen industry," said Ford.

Auckland's indigenous community has voiced strong opposition to the U.S. threats.

"We're strong in our intent and we stick to the values of our people, and as long as we work with integrity and honesty we'll be fine," said Taua-Gordon.

New Zealand boosts movie production incentives amid Trump's tariffs

Geoeconomic confrontation is the leading short-term global threat in 2026, the World Economic Forum (WEF) warned in its Global Risks Report 2026 released on Wednesday ahead of its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

The report ranks geoeconomic confrontation as the top risk for 2026, followed by interstate conflict, extreme weather, societal polarization, and misinformation and disinformation. It also identifies geoeconomic confrontation as the most severe risk over the next two years.

"I think if there is to be one key takeaway from the report, it's that we are entering an age of competition and this new competitive order is then shaping current global risks, but it is also shaping and to some extent hindering our ability to actually cope with them. That's really the key takeaway. If we take a look at, the number one risk both for 2026 and two years out, it's dual economic confrontation. But then if we look at the risks 10 years out. It's really the climate and environment related risks. All of these things require global cooperation and that's where we're seeing a big backsliding in this new age of competition," said Saadia Zahidi, managing director of the WEF.

Economic risks showed the largest increase in the two-year outlook, with concerns over economic downturns, inflation, rising debt and potential asset bubbles intensifying amid geoeconomic tensions, the report said.

Environmental risks remain the most severe overall, led by extreme weather, biodiversity loss and critical changes to Earth systems. The report noted that three-quarters of respondents expect a turbulent environmental outlook.

Risks related to adverse outcomes of artificial intelligence rose sharply, climbing from 30th in the two-year horizon to fifth in the 10-year outlook, reflecting concerns over impacts on labor markets, society and security.

The 21st edition of the report draws on views from more than 1,300 experts, policymakers and industry leaders.

The WEF's annual meeting will be held in Davos from Jan 19 to 23 and draw nearly 3,000 guests from more than 130 countries and regions to participate.

"So overall, we are starting to see this shift away from what have traditionally been the ways in which people have been able to cooperate. Now, that is not to say that any of this is a foregone conclusion. And I think that's a really important message around the risks report. None of this is set in stone. All of this is in the hands of leaders. Whether they choose to cooperate and invest in resilience or whether they do not. So that's really what we'll be focused on next week in Davos bringing leaders together under this overall theme of 'a spirit of dialogue' and trying to reestablish relationships, cooperation and trust. That's the fundamental," said Zahidi.

WEF warns of rising geoeconomic risks in 2026