---
title: "Small exporter planning investment"
publisher: "Onsomble Limited"
publication: "NZBrands.ai"
edition: 1
collected_on: "2026-10-05"
html_url: "https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/voters/s11/"
---

# Small exporter planning investment

Edition 1 · answers collected 5 October 2026.

[Read on NZBrands.ai](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/voters/s11/)

I run a small manufacturing business that exports and employs staff. We are considering new equipment but worry about demand, freight costs and finding skilled workers.

This is a designed voter situation, not a representative sample or a finding about everyone in that group.

## What they asked

### PF057 · Economy

I run a small manufacturing business that exports and employs staff. We are considering new equipment but worry about demand, freight costs and finding skilled workers. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. How do parties compare on business investment, productivity and support for small exporters?

Study-assigned priority: Major. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Investment depends on demand and operating conditions.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/91b36a04-9b98-43b4-b0af-5957145b3a9a.md)

### PF058 · Foreign affairs and defence

I run a small manufacturing business that exports and employs staff. We are considering new equipment but worry about demand, freight costs and finding skilled workers. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What do parties propose about trade access, international relationships and risks to New Zealand exports?

Study-assigned priority: Major. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Trade relationships affect this business directly.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/c0652968-50ca-4bc4-b476-06d4a4e46c1c.md)

### PF059 · Jobs and unemployment

I run a small manufacturing business that exports and employs staff. We are considering new equipment but worry about demand, freight costs and finding skilled workers. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What plans do parties have for vocational skills, training and the availability of skilled workers?

Study-assigned priority: Major. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Skill shortages constrain stated expansion plans.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/f61c1e75-be45-4492-b364-e753cc9a3fad.md)

### PF060 · Immigration

I run a small manufacturing business that exports and employs staff. We are considering new equipment but worry about demand, freight costs and finding skilled workers. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. How would party immigration policies affect hiring skilled staff from overseas?

Study-assigned priority: Major. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Skilled recruitment is an explicit workforce constraint.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/b0fd1b26-8bbe-4d5c-8ee4-ddac28bb943c.md)

### PF061 · Infrastructure and local services

I run a small manufacturing business that exports and employs staff. We are considering new equipment but worry about demand, freight costs and finding skilled workers. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. Which parties address freight, ports and transport infrastructure in their plans for business?

Study-assigned priority: Secondary. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Freight routes and ports affect delivery costs.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/7c2059ed-af87-42b2-b21c-5544acdffcb8.md)

### PF062 · Fuel and energy

I run a small manufacturing business that exports and employs staff. We are considering new equipment but worry about demand, freight costs and finding skilled workers. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. How do parties' energy and fuel policies affect businesses making and moving goods?

Study-assigned priority: Secondary. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Freight and equipment running costs affect margins.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/329da0c8-78c0-4824-b542-0c1efdf693dc.md)

## Which parties AI put in front of this voter

Of the 24 answers this voter received, 18 left out at least one of the six parties in Parliament. Te Pāti Māori was named least often, in 6 of 24.

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers collected |
| --- | --- | --- |
| National | 24 | 24 |
| Labour | 24 | 24 |
| Greens | 22 | 24 |
| ACT | 23 | 24 |
| NZ First | 22 | 24 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 6 | 24 |
| Opportunity | 4 | 24 |

## Issue by issue

## Economy

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 17 | 15 | 1 | 0 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 14 | 17 | 0 | 2 |
| Greens | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 5 | 11 | 1 | 3 |
| ACT | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 18 | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| NZ First | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 15 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 0 | 4 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |

## Foreign affairs and defence

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 8 | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 6 | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| Greens | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 1 | 18 | 0 | 0 |
| ACT | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 11 | 15 | 0 | 0 |
| NZ First | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 1 | 17 | 0 | 1 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 |

## Jobs and unemployment

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 3 | 18 | 0 | 1 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 17 | 7 | 0 | 1 |
| Greens | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| ACT | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 8 | 8 | 0 | 1 |
| NZ First | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 3 | 11 | 0 | 1 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 0 | 4 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Immigration

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 9 | 10 | 0 | 2 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 0 | 13 | 2 | 8 |
| Greens | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 7 | 10 | 0 | 2 |
| ACT | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 2 | 11 | 9 | 6 |
| NZ First | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 1 | 13 | 12 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |

## Infrastructure and local services

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 14 | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 9 | 19 | 2 | 0 |
| Greens | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 3 | 20 | 2 | 2 |
| ACT | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 5 | 12 | 1 | 0 |
| NZ First | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 6 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 0 | 4 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 0 | 4 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Fuel and energy

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 12 | 12 | 0 | 2 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 13 | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| Greens | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 10 | 7 | 0 | 4 |
| ACT | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 7 | 11 | 0 | 2 |
| NZ First | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 10 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |

## How the assistants handled this voter’s main question

The exporter receives more useful detail when the answer stays with capital spending, skilled staff and freight. PF057 ChatGPT explicitly organises the comparison around those mechanisms and offers to tailor it using equipment expenditure and export destinations. This avoids treating the business as interchangeable with the café in S10.

Gemini's opening introduces an erroneous-looking election ordinal ('20th New Zealand General Election'), while its tax-policy detail differs from the National framing in the other captured answers. Those statements are verification candidates, not evidence that the business should prefer another party. AI Mode largely describes investment philosophy; AI Overviews offers an equipment comparison matrix.

The practical distinction is between a deduction on qualifying expenditure, a grant, a lower tax rate and improved demand. They have different eligibility and cash-flow effects. A polished matrix can help identify those mechanisms while still needing a check of thresholds, asset definitions and whether the policy exists at the collection date.

ChatGPT

> For a manufacturing exporter, the 2026 election is unusually relevant to the issues you mention. BusinessNZ’s 2026 survey found freight/logistics costs were identified by 50.9% of business respondents as an important issue, alongside supply-chain disruption and exchange-rate volatility. The economic priorities for New Zealand’s future | Election Survey 2026 | Deloitte New Zealand

[Full captured answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/91b36a04-9b98-43b4-b0af-5957145b3a9a.md)

Gemini

> As a small manufacturing and exporting business owner, your concerns—navigating domestic demand, managing freight and input costs, securing skilled labor, and finding capital for equipment—sit right at the heart of the economic debates for the 20th New Zealand General Election (November 7, 2026).

[Full captured answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/91b36a04-9b98-43b4-b0af-5957145b3a9a.md)

Google AI Mode

> As a small manufacturing business owner weighing up demand, freight costs, compliance, and skilled labor pressures ahead of the 7 November 2026 general election, the major political parties present distinct philosophies and toolkits for handling business investment and productivity.

[Full captured answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/91b36a04-9b98-43b4-b0af-5957145b3a9a.md)

Google AI Overviews

> For a small, exporting manufacturing business looking to invest in new equipment, the major political parties offer distinctly different paths toward productivity, asset investment, and small business support for the upcoming 2026 New Zealand General Election.

[Full captured answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/questions/91b36a04-9b98-43b4-b0af-5957145b3a9a.md)

## Sources recorded against the answers

## ChatGPT

| Answers collected | Answers with sources recorded | Answers showing a link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 6 | 6 | 6 |

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| labour.org.nz | 6 |
| national.org.nz | 6 |
| nzfirst.nz | 6 |
| act.org.nz | 5 |
| greens.org.nz | 5 |
| deloitte.com | 2 |
| hansard.parliament.nz | 2 |
| reuters.com | 2 |
| education.govt.nz | 1 |
| elections.nz | 1 |

Publisher counts sum recorded website/answer associations; one answer can contribute to several websites and publisher types.

| Publisher type | Recorded associations |
| --- | --- |
| Party websites | 29 |
| Government | 11 |
| News | 3 |
| Comparison sites | 1 |
| Advocacy groups | 0 |
| Businesses | 2 |
| Social media | 0 |
| Other | 3 |

## Gemini

| Answers collected | Answers with sources recorded | Answers showing a link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 6 | 6 | 0 |

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| ema.co.nz | 2 |
| kiwicoaches.co.nz | 2 |
| labour.org.nz | 2 |
| aimsglobal.co.nz | 1 |
| apex.org.nz | 1 |
| businessnz.org.nz | 1 |
| education.govt.nz | 1 |
| electrification.co.nz | 1 |
| farmersweekly.co.nz | 1 |
| fenews.co.uk | 1 |

Publisher counts sum recorded website/answer associations; one answer can contribute to several websites and publisher types.

| Publisher type | Recorded associations |
| --- | --- |
| Party websites | 4 |
| Government | 2 |
| News | 1 |
| Comparison sites | 1 |
| Advocacy groups | 6 |
| Businesses | 5 |
| Social media | 0 |
| Other | 1 |

## Google AI Mode

| Answers collected | Answers with sources recorded | Answers showing a link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 6 | 6 | 0 |

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| elections.nz | 2 |
| labour.org.nz | 2 |
| nzherald.co.nz | 2 |
| policy.nz | 2 |
| rnz.co.nz | 2 |
| transporting.nz | 2 |
| education.govt.nz | 1 |
| exportnz.org.nz | 1 |
| livinginnz.co.nz | 1 |
| national.org.nz | 1 |

Publisher counts sum recorded website/answer associations; one answer can contribute to several websites and publisher types.

| Publisher type | Recorded associations |
| --- | --- |
| Party websites | 3 |
| Government | 3 |
| News | 6 |
| Comparison sites | 3 |
| Advocacy groups | 4 |
| Businesses | 1 |
| Social media | 1 |
| Other | 1 |

## Google AI Overviews

| Answers collected | Answers with sources recorded | Answers showing a link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 6 | 6 | 1 |

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| rnz.co.nz | 6 |
| labour.org.nz | 5 |
| national.org.nz | 5 |
| stories.theconversation.com | 4 |
| act.org.nz | 3 |
| nzherald.co.nz | 3 |
| 1news.co.nz | 2 |
| businessnz.org.nz | 2 |
| facebook.com | 2 |
| greens.org.nz | 2 |

Publisher counts sum recorded website/answer associations; one answer can contribute to several websites and publisher types.

| Publisher type | Recorded associations |
| --- | --- |
| Party websites | 17 |
| Government | 4 |
| News | 22 |
| Comparison sites | 2 |
| Advocacy groups | 6 |
| Businesses | 8 |
| Social media | 3 |
| Other | 7 |

## What this can and cannot tell you

One set of answers, from made-up voters, on one day.

Each question was asked once. AI assistants vary their answers, so a repeat run would differ in wording and detail. The location comparison shows that answers differed; proving that location caused the difference would need repeat runs and verified access locations.

The voters are designed situations, not a sample of New Zealanders. The study shows what the assistants said and lets anyone check it. It does not show whether anyone changed their vote, or why the assistants answered as they did.

We read all 32 voting-guidance answers and the case-study questions in full, and checked 17 statements. We have not read all 815 answers in full or checked every policy claim.

[Read the complete methodology](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/1/method.md)

## Publication and corrections

Published and funded by Onsomble Limited. NZBrands.ai takes no view on any party or policy.

[Independence](https://nzbrands.ai/about/independence/) · [Corrections](https://nzbrands.ai/about/corrections/) · [Contact](https://nzbrands.ai/about/contact/)