Westpac New Zealand has released analysis on the economic impacts of the coronavirus, which forecasts that New Zealand’s “currently rampant” housing market will “skid to a halt” over the second quarter. However, it will rebound from 2021 as monetary stimulus bites: The currently rampant housing market is likely to skid to a halt, with price
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NZ migration to Australia halves
New Zealand migration to Australia has halved according to Statistics New Zealand: The estimated number of people migrating from New Zealand to Australia was 31,300 in the year ended June 2019, Stats NZ said today. This is half the peak of 62,800 in the June 2012 year. “Trans-Tasman migration has ebbed and flowed at different
Why is New Zealand sick of Jacinda Ardern?
In the lead-up to the September 2017 New Zealand general election, Labour promised to reduce immigration by around a third by cutting the numbers of work and student visas: …in recent years our population has been growing rapidly as record numbers of migrants arrive here. This has happened without the Government planning for the impact immigration is
NZ house prices rocket to new all-time highs
The REINZ has released its house price data for January, which revealed a 2.1% seasonally adjusted increase in values over the month, with values nationally surging by 11.8% year-on-year to a new record high: The breakdown by region is shown below: Outside of Auckland, seasonally adjusted house prices rose by 1.5% in January, with prices
Jacinda Adern exposed
With seven months to go before the national election, New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Adern’s, hold on power is looking increasing insecure after a series of broken election promises: Three years ago, Ardern was elected on a promise to “transform” New Zealand in the most exciting vote the country had seen in decades… Ardern’s Labour
Why New Zealand should boot Jacinda Ardern
Via Bloomie: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern could be facing a tough battle to win re-election this year, with her opponents holding a small lead seven months out from the vote, a new poll shows. The opposition National Party is steady on 46% support, retaining its position as the country’s most popular political party,
Housing shrinkflation has you paying much more for less
Statistics New Zealand has released data showing that the average floor area of new homes consented in 2019 was about 21% (42 square metres) smaller than the peak of 200 square metres in the December 2010 year, and has fallen to mid-1990s levels: “The drop in new home size is primarily due to stand-alone houses
New Zealand unemployment falls, wages lift
Statistics New Zealand has released labour market data for the December quarter, which reveals both falling unemployment an rising wage growth. New Zealand unemployment fell to 4.0% from 4.1% (revised) in the September quarter: The labour underutilisation rate also fell to an 11-year low of 10%: The seasonally adjusted underutilisation rate fell to 10.0 percent
Jacinda Adern’s boulevard of broken promises
Interest.co.nz has published an interesting article on how this year’s national election campaign will confront exactly the same housing problems as the 2017 election: Labour will be stuck between a rock and a hard place campaigning on housing issues ahead of the election. On the one hand it has house price growth to thank for
NZ housing market ended 2019 with a bang
The REINZ has released its house price data for December, which revealed a 0.4% seasonally adjusted increase in values over the month, with values nationally surging by 12.4% year-on-year to a new record high: The breakdown by region is shown below: Outside of Auckland, seasonally adjusted house prices rose by 0.7% in November, with prices
Migrant work visas surge under Jacinda Adern
In the lead-up to the September 2017 general election, the New Zealand Labour Party launched a plan to reduce immigration by around a third in a bid to relieve chronic housing and infrastructure pressures (especially around Auckland): …in recent years our population has been growing rapidly as record numbers of migrants arrive here. This has
New Zealand humiliates Recessionberg with big infrastructure spend
Via Stuff: The Government will invest an extra $12b in infrastructure over the next four years, including $6.8b on transport. Finance Minister Grant Robertson unveiled the spending at the Half-Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) on Wednesday afternoon, saying it was the right time to take advantage of low interest rates and “future-proof” New Zealand
RBNZ drops $20bn capital requirement on Aussie banks
Bravo RBNZ again: The Reserve Bank of New Zealand today released its final decisions following its comprehensive review of its capital framework for banks, known as the Capital Review. Governor Adrian Orr said the decisions to increase capital requirements are about making the banking system safer for all New Zealanders, and will ensure bank owners have
NZ Labour’s immigration lies exposed again
In the lead-up to the September 2017 general election, the New Zealand Labour Party launched a plan to reduce immigration by around a third in a bid to relieve chronic housing and infrastructure pressures (especially around Auckland): …in recent years our population has been growing rapidly as record numbers of migrants arrive here. This has
NZ hits 5M population target 30 years early
The New Zealand Herald business columnist, Liam Dann, lamented that the nation’s population is about to hit 5 million people 30-years earlier than projected in 2004: I have become obsessed with a Statistics New Zealand press release from 2004. It forecasts New Zealand’s population to hit 5.05 million people by 2050… Now I can’t get
NZ home ownership crashes to 70-year low
New Zealand’s home ownership rate has plunged to 70-year lows, according to the latest Census: According to the 2018 census, only 64.5 per cent of New Zealanders own their own home, compared to nearly 74 per cent in the early 1990s. Shamubeel Eaqub said it was driven by a lack of affordability in New Zealand.
NZ house prices hit record high
The REINZ has released its house price data for October, which revealed a 1.1% increase in values over the month, with values nationally also increasing by 7.6% year-on-year to a new record high: The breakdown by region is shown below: Outside of Auckland, seasonally adjusted house prices rose by 1.3% in October, with prices up
Record number of Aussies head to NZ
Statistics New Zealand has released tourism data showing that more than 1.5 million Australians travelled to New Zealand in year to September 2019 – a record high: Visitor arrivals from Australia exceeded 1.5 million for the year ended September 2019, Stats NZ said today… The lift in visitor arrivals from Australia for the year ended
Jacinda Adern’s immigration lies exposed again
In the lead-up to the September 2017 general election, the New Zealand Labour Party launched a plan to reduce immigration by around a third in a bid to relieve chronic housing and infrastructure pressures (especially around Auckland): …in recent years our population has been growing rapidly as record numbers of migrants arrive here. This has
NZ unemployment bounces off 11-year low
Statistics New Zealand has released its labour force data for the September quarter, with the unemployment rate rising 0.3% to 4.1% from last quarter’s 11-year low of 3.9%. Below are the key points from the release: Unemployment rate rose to 4.2 percent. Underutilisation rate fell to 10.4 percent. Employment rate was unchanged at 67.5 percent.
Ardern’s election promise shattered as NZ immigration booms
In the lead-up to the September 2017 general election, the New Zealand Labour Party launched a plan to reduce immigration by around a third in a bid to relieve chronic housing and infrastructure pressures (especially around Auckland): …in recent years our population has been growing rapidly as record numbers of migrants arrive here. This has
One-in-five Kiwi homes suffering from damp
The deplorable state of New Zealand housing has come to light, with Statistics New Zealand releasing results from the Census revealing that more than one-in-five homes are suffering from damp, with more than one-in-three rental homes impacted: More than one in five homes were damp some or all of the time, and for renters, dampness
Labour’s election promise shattered as NZ immigration climbs
In the lead-up to the September 2017 general election, the New Zealand Labour Party launched a plan to reduce immigration by around a third in a bid to relieve chronic housing and infrastructure pressures (especially around Auckland): …in recent years our population has been growing rapidly as record numbers of migrants arrive here. This has
More evidence New Zealand’s ‘skills-based’ visa system is failing
Much like Australia, New Zealand purports to run a ‘skills-based’ visa system that plugs critical skills shortages across the nation. However, new data from Statistics New Zealand actually shows that fewer of those migrating to New Zealand are of working-age. From Interest.co.nz: The Government’s decision to open the door to the parents of migrants to
NZ Government opens visa sluice gates
In the lead-up to the September 2017 general election, the New Zealand Labour Party launched a plan to reduce immigration by around a third in a bid to relieve chronic housing and infrastructure pressures (especially around Auckland): …in recent years our population has been growing rapidly as record numbers of migrants arrive here. This has
NZ’s housing shortage goes from bad to worse
Results from the New Zealand Census shows that the country’s housing shortage worsened materially in the five years to 2018 as mass immigration-fuelled population growth easily exceeded the number of dwelling additions: The figures show that between the 2013 and 2018 censuses this country’s usually resident population increased by 10.8%, while the total number of
Temporary visa deluge fuels modern slavery
The OECD’s annual review of migration trends has revealed that Australia and New Zealand have the largest temporary migrant workforces in the world, which is raising competition for lower-income workers and suppressing wages: Australia had almost 750,000 permits for temporary migrants on issue in 2017, second in total number only to the US. As a
NZ GDP growth slowest since 2013
Statistics New Zealand has released national accounts figures for the June quarter of 2019, with Gross domestic product (GDP) rising by 0.5% over the quarter. Between the June quarter of 2018 and the latest June quarter GDP rose 2.1%, which was the slowest rate since December 2013. As shown below, services drove the GDP growth,
Governments open temporary visa floodgates
It never ceases to amaze how our dishonest governments pull the wool over voters’ eyes on immigration. In Australia, we’ve recently witnessed the Morrison Government wax lyrical about reducing immigration to “relieve congestion in the cities”, only to then see the number of temporary visas balloon to unprecedented levels, as illustrated below: Accordingly, net overseas
Auckland house sales crash to 2010 levels
The REINZ has released its house price data for July, which revealed a 0.6% increase in values over the month, with values nationally also increasing by 5.4% year-on-year: Outside of Auckland, seasonally adjusted house prices rose by 2.2% in July, with prices up 6.5% year-on-year. Whereas Auckland’s seasonally adjusted median house price fell by 1.2%