New Zealand Economy

New Zealand experienced one of the world’s largest house price increases during the pandemic, only for prices to then crash back to pre-pandemic levels over subsequent years.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand released CPI inflation data today, which showed that New Zealand inflation lifted further in Q2 to 2.7%.

Net overseas migration into New Zealand has collapsed to a 2½-year low and is tracking around half the historical average.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, New Zealand experienced one of the world’s largest house price booms, which pushed median home values to a record 11.2 times median household incomes, according to Demographia.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand paused following the RBA this week.

In the past week, New Zealand’s financial markets have been primarily influenced by global events, with little guidance provided by local data.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has slashed the official cash rate by 2.25%, which has lowered mortgage rates by around 2% over the past year.

New Zealand’s economy is a basket case.

Following one of the largest increases in the industrialised world during the Covid-19 pandemic, New Zealand’s housing prices fell sharply.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has cut the official cash rate by 2.25% to 3.25% over the past nine months.

Stats New Zealand released data showing that net overseas migration (NOM) fell to 21,300 for the year ending April 2025, a decline from 90,900 a year earlier.

Justin Fabo from Antipodean Macro posted the following chart, which shows the collapse in mortgage rates in New Zealand.

Following one of the largest booms in the developed world during the pandemic, New Zealand’s house prices experienced a significant decline.

Last week, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand lowered the official cash rate (OCR) to 3.25%, down 2.25% from the recent peak.

New Zealand experienced one of the world’s biggest house price booms over the pandemic, with prices soaring by around 30%.

Statistics New Zealand has released data showing that net overseas migration (NOM) decreased to 26,400 for the year ending March 2025, a decline from 100,400 in the year ending March 2024.

New Zealand’s unemployment rate rose to 5.1% in Q4 2024, up from 4.8% in Q3 2024. In comparison, Australia’s unemployment rate was 3.9% in Q4 2024 (4.1% in March), the widest gap since Q3 2012.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has cut the official cash rate (OCR) by 0.25% to 3.50%.

I reported last week on the latest results from Realestate.co.nz, showing that the national average asking price of homes listed on the site declined for the second consecutive month in April to $851,746, down 3.8% from $884,995 in February.

While Australia’s two major parties are busy blowing the world’s largest house price bubble, New Zealand’s politicians are letting their house prices slowly deflate, restoring affordability.

This week saw the Reserve Bank of New Zealand cut the official cash rate (OCR) by 0.25% to 3.50%, as widely expected.