The business community is feeling downbeat.

Business confidence is back down to March 2020 levels, with 62 percent of businesses expecting economic conditions to deteriorate.

New Zealand Institute of Economic Research Principal Economist Christina Leung says worker shortages are troubling Kiwi firms.

She told Heather du Plessis-Allan border restrictions loosening could change that.

“So we do expect that recovery in net inflow and the labour shortages being alleviated to some extent as firms do bring in workers from other countries.”

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