Orr gets Reserve Bank Governor

The Herald reports:

The appointment of Adrian Orr as New Zealand’s next Reserve Bank Governor was met with a surge in the kiwi dollar – indicating markets see the current chief executive of the NZ Superannuation Fund as a sensible and stable choice.

Orr certainly has the experience for the job and had been tipped early on as a likely candidate.

The kiwi currency rose almost a quarter of a cent against the US dollar after the announcement by Finance Minister Grant Robertson.

Orr is a former Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank where he headed up the economics division and he worked as an Economist at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in the mid-1990s.

You know it is a good appointment when the currency rises on the announcement. There are few appointed roles where that would happen – it shows how powerful the role of Governor is.

In discussion about who might get the role Orr had always been high on the list of names, Tuffley said.

“The only question mark was, would he be interested in shifting from the current job.”

Orr is likely to take a pay cut when he switches to the Reserve Bank.

As chief executive of the Superannuation Fund he was the highest paid public servant in the country.

His remuneration, of more than $1 million, attracted controversy when a pay rise awarded by his board was criticised by then-Prime Minister Bill English earlier this year.

In contrast, the previous Reserve Bank Governor Graeme Wheeler reportedly had a salary of $660,000.

He may get a bit more than that but will be taking a big pay drop I am sure.

In his role as NZ Superannuation CEO he has overseen average annual growth of 10.5 per cent since 2007. Over the last five years it has returned 16.2 per cent per annum.

The Super Fund currently manages some $37.2 billion dollars worth of state funds.

A very good legacy at the NZ Super Fund.