The Fieldays agricultural show at Mystery Creek in June generated $430 million in sales revenue for New Zealand firms, up nine per cent from 2015, according to a study commissioned to evaluate the economic impact of the event.
An economic report prepared by consulting economist Warren Hughes and the University of Waikato Management School's Institute of Business Research said that of the total, $124.5 million in revenue was generated for firms in the Waikato region.
The impact on gross domestic product was calculated at $58m for the Waikato and $191m for all of New Zealand.
"One of the highlights of the report is that, despite the downturn in dairying, the results were better than expected," Hughes said in a statement.
The number of exhibitor sites went up four per cent to 1507, and the number of gate entries also increased to 130,684, about four per cent higher than 2015.