Auckland tops economic scoreboard

Photo / Herald on Sunday

Auckland is taking its supercity title literally, while Northland is struggling on most fronts, a scoreboard measuring economic performance during the last quarter shows.

The ASB/Main Report Regional Economic Scoreboard lists Auckland as the most confident of the 16 regional council areas, with gains in house prices and growth in retail sales among the strongest in the country.

The report, which uses measures including employment, construction, retail trade and house prices, gives the city a three star rating out of a possible five stars - with five being hot and one being not.

Growth was also reported in car registrations, while residential construction and non-residential activity was picking up.

However, guest nights had not picked up to the extent recorded in other regions.

Northland only managed one star this quarter, after posting strong growth a few years ago, the report says.

"Unemployment remains high, employment is down on a year ago, and consumer confidence is relatively low."

The construction outlook was weak and the housing market quiet.

New car sales were up, but less than elsewhere.

"A little bit of rain will help - the drought has been tough on the region," the report says.

Taranaki and Wellington also earned three stars, although the confidence in our capital city has not yet translated to a pick up in spending, with retail trade down on a year ago.

However guest nights were up, with Wellington recording the strongest lift in the country.

Taranaki comes in third on the latest rankings, posting good gains in car sales and house sales, which were stronger than in any other region.

House prices are lifting in line with the national average.

All of the remaining regions "need an energy injection" and earned just two stars.

They include Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke's Bay, Manawatu-Wanganui, Nelson, Tasman, Marlborough, West Coast, Canterbury, Otago and Southland.

The Bay of Plenty dropped a few places to mid table, after coming in third in the previous quarter.

The construction sector is weak and house prices are still going sideways, the report says.

The report says Manawatu-Wanganui is muddling through, with activity in house market picking up, while confidence at the top of the South Island dipped noticeably during the last quarter.

There were no clear-cut reasons for the mood shift, with house prices lifting, and the construction outlook picking up more than anywhere else.

Canterbury was the top ranked region for several quarters, but has now slipped to mid table.

Confidence picked up during the last quarter, but did not translate to activity at the malls, according to the report.

Southland remains cautious, the report says.

House price gains have been more modest than most regions, and turnover is low.

Overall the recovery from recession was a long slow process, and most regions remained in need of an energy injection.