Graduate Economist

Antitrust and Competition
Auckland

NERA Economic Consulting (www.nera.com) is a global firm of experts dedicated to applying economic, finance, and quantitative principles to complex business and legal challenges. NERA has been in business for more than six decades. Since 1961, NERA has provided unparalleled guidance on the most important market, legal, and regulatory questions of the day. With its main office in New York City, NERA serves clients from more than 25 offices across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific.

We have an opening for a Research Associate/ Associate Analyst to join our Auckland office. The New Zealand team is part of a global network of leading economic and industry experts. The team is involved in high-stakes legal and regulatory proceedings in New Zealand, Australia and Asia, spanning a broad cross section of industries and practice areas. This includes addressing questions such as:

Would a merger between New Zealand’s two major newspapers substantially lessen competition?Is the fuel market competitive?What is a reasonable price for accessing regulated infrastructure such as broadband and electricity networks?How should water rights be allocated?Is the current design of the wholesale electricity market resulting in efficient outcomes?What are the economic costs of using different fuels to decarbonise long distance heavy road freight?What loss has a party suffered due to a breach of contract?How material is the damage that consumers have suffered due to collusive pricing by suppliers?

Our work involves writing independent expert reports that are filed with courts, regulators and policy makers. It is therefore essential that our work is rigorous, technically accurate and independent.

Your responsibilities

This is a team-based, multi-task environment that requires precision work that is both qualitative and quantitative, often with tight deadlines. Responsibilities will include:

Analysing a range of dataDesigning and building quantitative models and applying econometric analysis to dataCollecting market, industry and company informationReviewing, summarising and applying relevant economic literatureManaging large data sets and writing programmes to implement complex analysisDrafting memos and making written contributions to presentations, reports and expert evidenceParticipating in team and client meetings and conference calls

You will need

Candidates should be working towards a post-graduate degree in Economics, Economics with Finance or a related discipline with evidence of high academic achievement (candidates with an exceptional undergraduate degree will also be considered). Importantly, candidates should have a strong interest in quantitative analysis and enjoy thinking about problems in applied microeconomics. Qualified candidates must be detail-oriented, able to think analytically and critically, and have excellent oral and written communication. An inquisitive nature and ability to think independently is critical.

What we offer

NERA provides a challenging and rewarding professional experience with competitive compensation. You will be working in a collegial and intellectually challenging environment where independent and innovative thought is encouraged and rewarded. We are a small, tightly knit team with a flat structure, so from the outset you will have exposure to client projects, which include working with large law firms, corporates and regulators. We only work on high-stakes and complex issues and disputes, so our work is intellectually rewarding and constantly evolving.

We promote from within, and support both personal and professional growth. Elements of our programme include a comprehensive induction, skills enhancement training sessions, and regular formal performance evaluations. 

How to apply

For more information about NERA, please visit our website (www.nera.com). To apply for this position or to find out about other opportunities please submit your CV, cover letter, writing sample (preferably with some Economics content) and transcripts directly to this posting.

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