I came from a country with high interest rates where you can easily find an investment that pays more than inflation, but I moved to New Zealand and was surprised when I saw that the inflation rate is around 1.6% quarterly and my bank pays me 4.5% yearly.
Am I missing something basic? For me it's very odd that I lose money over time when I'm saving it.
Do kiwis opt for different types of investments other than the ones offered by money? Perhaps save & lose money until having a sum to invest in something bigger, like getting a mortgage and buying a house?
Maybe my bank is just bad in investments? :)
Just a background: I don't have big sums of money, so I'm talking about the investments one makes to put what is left from salary.