Strong economic rebound in December quarter – Stats NZ
Stats NZ has confirmed expectations and revealed the New Zealand economy grew strongly in the three months til December 31.
Thursday, March 17th 2022, 2:19PM
by Eric Frykberg
It did however fall short of some bank forecasts.
The growth figure was 3.0 percent and followed a 3.6 percent fall in the September 2021 quarter, which was influenced by mid-year Covid lockdown.
Stats NZ says the rise in economic activity this quarter came as COVID-19 restrictions loosened.
It says the services industries led the increase in the December quarter, driven by business services and the retail trade sub-industry within retail trade, accommodation, and restaurants.
The rise in retail trade activity was reflected in higher household consumption expenditure, which increased 5.2 percent.
“Households spent more on goods and services, particularly on durable items such as clothing and footwear, and electrical appliances,” A Stats NZ official, Ruvani Ratnayake, said.
Goods-producing industries also contributed to the rise in GDP, with manufacturing and construction the main drivers.
Overall, investment in fixed assets rose 11.1 percent, with strong contributions from transport equipment, and plant, machinery, and equipment investment.
The rise was lower than Westpac's prediction of 3.8% and ANZ's forecast 0f 3.5% but above the number predicted by the Reserve Bank in February.
Bank economists have already warned that these figures are historic and should not be used to assess current conditions, because a lot has happened since December 31st.
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