CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau The war in Iran and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz have sent oil prices past US$100 a barrel – and Kiwis flocking to fill up. Petrol just hit NZ$3 a litre ... <a title="Iran oil crisis: why NZ’s car dependence is now a strategic liability" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/iran-oil-crisis-why-nzs-car-dependence-is-now-a-strategic-liability-278526/" aria-label="Read more about Iran oil crisis: why NZ’s car dependence is now a strategic liability">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand The highest number of sexual assault allegations made by prisoners against staff in the 2024/25 financial year was recorded at Auckland Prison. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone The Department of Corrections says a sharp rise in allegations of sexual assault by prisoners against staff is largely due to the introduction of a ... <a title="Surge in prison sexual assault allegations linked to new complaints system, Corrections says" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/surge-in-prison-sexual-assault-allegations-linked-to-new-complaints-system-corrections-says/" aria-label="Read more about Surge in prison sexual assault allegations linked to new complaints system, Corrections says">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand Finance Minister Nicola Willis. RNZ / Mark Papalii Finance Minister Nicola Willis might be being optimistic if she thinks inflation at 3.7 percent is a “worst case scenario”, one economist says. Willis told media on Monday that in the event of a prolonged conflict in Iran, lasting until the end of ... <a title="Is Nicola Willis’s ‘worst-case’ scenario not bad enough?" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/is-nicola-williss-worst-case-scenario-not-bad-enough/" aria-label="Read more about Is Nicola Willis’s ‘worst-case’ scenario not bad enough?">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand When 18-year-old Wellington student Estella wants a different take on the latest war in the Middle East – or the conflict in Palestine or the Ukraine invasion – she has a quick scroll through her boyfriend’s social media feeds. Even though they share similar political views, his feed tends to skew ... <a title="Anxious, desensitised: How teens learn about news now" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/anxious-desensitised-how-teens-learn-about-news-now/" aria-label="Read more about Anxious, desensitised: How teens learn about news now">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand Motorists had received fines for driving above 30km/h on 16 November. File photo. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone Hundreds of speeding fines issued on a single day in Lower Hutt have been cancelled and refunded, after NZTA Waka Kotahi decided road signs had created confusion about the speed limit. The transport agency ... <a title="Speed limit confusion: NZTA reverses hundreds of fines" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/speed-limit-confusion-nzta-reverses-hundreds-of-fines/" aria-label="Read more about Speed limit confusion: NZTA reverses hundreds of fines">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand The scene of the fire around 4am on Wednesday. Facebook / Palmerston North Fire Brigade Firefighters are still battling a blaze at a large distribution warehouse in the central North Island. The fire in Milson, Palmerston North was first reported at 6.32pm on Tuesday. A Fire and Emergency spokesperson said the ... <a title="Crews called in from Wellington to help with warehouse fire in Manawatū" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/crews-called-in-from-wellington-to-help-with-warehouse-fire-in-manawatu/" aria-label="Read more about Crews called in from Wellington to help with warehouse fire in Manawatū">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand The defence lawyers say the staff were using legal restraint to keep themselves and the teens safe in a high risk situation. File photo. RNZ Seven Oranga Tamariki workers are accused of bashing two teens – or failing to stop them being bashed – in a tiny phone room at Korowai ... <a title="Seven Oranga Tamariki workers on trial accused of assaulting two teens at youth justice facility" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/seven-oranga-tamariki-workers-on-trial-accused-of-assaulting-two-teens-at-youth-justice-facility/" aria-label="Read more about Seven Oranga Tamariki workers on trial accused of assaulting two teens at youth justice facility">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand A smoke plume rises from an ongoing fire near Dubai International Airport. AFP A New Zealand citizen living in Dubai says they feel abandoned by the government as conflict intensifies, describing constant missile activity, shortages and a lack of clear evacuation support. Speaking anonymously, the expat told RNZ that conditions on ... <a title="‘We feel abandoned’: Kiwi in Dubai describes fear, chaos and lack of consular support" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/we-feel-abandoned-kiwi-in-dubai-describes-fear-chaos-and-lack-of-consular-support/" aria-label="Read more about ‘We feel abandoned’: Kiwi in Dubai describes fear, chaos and lack of consular support">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand New Zealand bowler Lockie Ferguson. Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz The results were reversed for both the White Ferns and Black Caps in game two of their T20 double-header series against South Africa in Hamilton. After a convincing first up 80-run win, the White Ferns were beaten by 18 runs, while the Black Caps ... <a title="White Ferns beaten, Black Caps win in game two of South Africa series" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/white-ferns-beaten-black-caps-win-in-game-two-of-south-africa-series/" aria-label="Read more about White Ferns beaten, Black Caps win in game two of South Africa series">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand The AI boom is creating a shortage of key elements for phones, computers, even cars and dishwashers. 123RF New Zealand consumers are being warned laptops, smart phones and even fridges are going to cost more as the price of key components jump by 400 percent. Since the AI boom, manufacturers had ... <a title="AI boom creating shortage of key elements for consumer technology" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/ai-boom-creating-shortage-of-key-elements-for-consumer-technology/" aria-label="Read more about AI boom creating shortage of key elements for consumer technology">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand RNZ A man who threatened four drivers with a machete in Australia in a series of attempted carjackings will be deported back to New Zealand. John Suafai Semau held a 64-year-old man in a headlock while trying to flee an accident scene in Queensland in 2022 and steal his car, and ... <a title="Machete-wielding carjacker to be deported back to New Zealand" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/machete-wielding-carjacker-to-be-deported-back-to-new-zealand/" aria-label="Read more about Machete-wielding carjacker to be deported back to New Zealand">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 18, 2026
Source: Radio New Zealand Ecologist Jess Scrimgeour doing fauna assessments in the burnt area. Supplied / Department of Conservation A Department of Conservation (DOC) ecological report reveals that native plants are making a comeback in the blackened fire-charred areas of Tongariro National Park, but warns that invasive weeds and animal pests pose a risk to ... <a title="Native speargrass survives Tongariro inferno virtually unscathed, report reveals" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/18/native-speargrass-survives-tongariro-inferno-virtually-unscathed-report-reveals/" aria-label="Read more about Native speargrass survives Tongariro inferno virtually unscathed, report reveals">Read more</a>
