Infometrics logo
PUBLIC ACCESS
INSIGHTS
CONTACT
Sign Up
Log In
www.infometrics.co.nz
Home
About us
Products
Services
Why use us?
News
Upcoming
Contact
www.infometrics.co.nz
Home
About us
Products
Services
Why use us?
News
Upcoming
Contact
newsletter
2024-12
Newsletter - December 2024

Recent media reports of 20k jobs lost in Wellington City just didn't add up. CE and Principal Economist Brad Olsen took a closer look at the underlying StatsNZ data. Turns out the adage "trust, but verify" applies. Read his full analysis in our featured article .

On a merrier note, we like to end the year with a light-hearted, economically altered Christmas Carol. Gareth Kiernan has adapted the Christmas song “It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" to get us into the holiday spirit. Whether you choose the original Perry Como version, or belt it out to Bublé... we don't judge.

It's also become an annual practice for Brad Olsen to cost the price of a Christmas feast, and examine what items are driving the cost of Christmas to higher levels, in our December Chart of the Month.

David Friggens, who heads our IT team, looks back on 2024 and what Infometrics has delivered.

It's been a big year for all of us. We'll keep a close eye on economic developments in New Zealand and around the world over the summer, and look forward to to delivering up-to-date assessments and insights in 2025. We wish our newsletter readers and clients a happy Festive Season and relaxing summer break.

Featured article

We received the first query about Wellington job losses at 3:49pm on Friday and started to look into the figures. The claim was that over 11% of job losses had occurred in Wellington City in September 2024 compared to a year ago. This enormous drop seemed far too large a fall, considering all the other economic indicators we monitor...

Wellington by air - 2024
Job losses – trust, but verify
US President Ronald Reagan is famous for repeatedly using the phrase “trust, but verify”, underscoring the importance of testing assumptions to confirm that claims are true. It’s a phrase that economists also keep in mind when dealing with a vast array of different datasets.
Read more
Articles
Luxon stonks
Infometrics Christmas Carol 2024
Chief Forecaster Gareth Kiernan has penned Infometrics’ traditional Christmas Carol. Sung to the tune of Perry Como's Christmas song “It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas”.
Read more
Year in review 2024
2024 Year in Review
2024 has been a challenging year for the economy, and although Infometrics has been sailing the same choppy waters as our clients, we’d like to focus on the positives as we pause for the summer break and reflect on the past 12 months.
Read more
Olsen Family Pavlova 2021
Chart of the Month: Counting the cost of Christmas 2024
Economic figures aren’t always the most interesting or entertaining, but they are important to monitor how broader trends evolve and what they mean for different groups. But sometimes, various datasets can be put to more fun use.
Read more
New releases and updates
Webinar recordings

November 2024: Where next for trade?

Browse webinars
Econ talks

Chief Executive and Principal Economist Brad Olsen and Chief Forecaster Gareth Kiernan discuss:
17 December: HYEFU 2024 shows more spending, less tax, and more debt

12 December: Housing market seeing some more investor activity

28 November: Tough environment for regional economies

Browse econ talks
Subscriber updates
Infrastructure Pipeline Profile

Infometrics Infrastructure Pipeline Profile (IPP) has been updated with the latest data for several infrastructure types. The Profile has also now been extended out to 2034 (from the previous period covering up to 2031).

Learn more
Population Projections

Infometrics Population Projections have been updated. The update incorporates Stats NZ’s subnational population estimates for 2024 and their revisions to previous years. Our projections have also been updated to reflect the changes in the population up to 2024, as well as our latest forecast for net migration.

Article
infometrics logo
Visit our website      Login
Contact us | Privacy policy
Subscribe to our newsletter
Previous newsletters

2024
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Go to latest
Infometrics
HomeAbout usTeamProductsNewsUpcomingContact
Contact us
Level 20Plimmer Towers2 Gilmer TerraceWellington 6011PO Box 25-309Wellington 6140New Zealand+64 4 909 7612
Infometrics logo
Infometrics is a leading NZ economic consultancy. We have 40+ years experience delivering insights and data on NZ's industries and regions.

© Copyright 2025 Infometrics Ltd
PrivacyTerms of Use