We are excited to launch an expansion of our Quarterly Economic Monitor (QEM) to provide a broader perspective on the prosperity of New Zealand’s communities. In this article, we introduce and explore the 13 new indicators which reflect economic, labour, social, and housing outcomes at a local level. Read

New Zealand’s economy looks to have expanded further in the September 2023 quarter, although momentum has slowed as various economic pressures hit. Continued jobs and population growth have supported growth, but high inflation and higher interest rates have moderated the strength seen in the economy. Rising pressures on the primary sector are also beginning to hit provincial economies. Read

Infometrics has recently added a new section to our Regional Economic Profile which explores the Pacific Peoples population and their role in regional labour markets. This article outlines the growing significance of New Zealand’s Pacific Peoples population in the context of broader demographic shifts. Read

The labour force participation rate is a measure of the adult population’s engagement in the labour market. Here we look at how the participation rate of young men has changed since the 1950's. Read

A constrained global supply of diesel has led to a substantial increase in prices over the last few months, both for importers, and at the pump. Higher diesel costs threaten to intensify inflationary pressures, with geopolitical concerns adding further upside risk. In this article, we outline the issues facing the current diesel market, and the outlook over the remainder of 2023 and into 2024. Read

There’s little doubt the housing market has started to come back to life over the last few months. In this article, we examine the indicators showing the market’s pick-up and what’s been driving that recovery. We also look at how pronounced and persistent the pick-up might be, and we explore the implications for future monetary policy settings and residential construction activity. Read

Domestic student university enrolments are reportedly down 3,000 this year compared with last year. Here, we examine why university enrolments might have fallen and whether they are likely to recover. Read

New Zealand’s greenhouse gas reduction targets are a critical part of moving towards a more resilient and sustainable model of production. An important, and underdiscussed part of this conversation, is the notion of Read

Recent data has been showing a downshift in residential building activity and less retail purchasing of hardware and DIY items. Although stock levels have also been falling, retail building supply stocks remain considerably higher than pre-pandemic. Higher stock levels but still-falling sales activi... Read

The tightness of the labour market in recent years has seen higher levels of reported poaching of talent, as businesses competed for workers. Anecdotally, we have been hearing from employers that worker headhunting and poaching are becoming less commonplace. But does the data support this? Read