The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / The Country / Opinion

Liam Dann: Our economy is performing brilliantly ... so are we better off?

Liam Dann
By Liam Dann
Business Editor at Large·NZ Herald·
15 Sep, 2016 05:00 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

People with property are getting richer - on paper. Picture / Greg Bowker

People with property are getting richer - on paper. Picture / Greg Bowker

Liam Dann
Opinion by Liam Dann
Liam Dann, Business Editor at Large for New Zealand’s Herald, works as a writer, columnist, radio commentator and as a presenter and producer of videos and podcasts.
Learn more

New Zealand's economy has grown by 3.6 per cent in the past year, one of the top performers in the OECD - ahead of Australia, the US and UK.

The dairy slump has failed to put a dent in our gross domestic product as tourism and construction have continued to boom.

The property boom may also be creating a wealth effect and helping boost retail spending.

But as Labour's Grant Robertson was quick to point out yesterday, record immigration has also driven growth and means that relative international performance looks less impressive on a per capita basis.

So what does it mean? Are we really getting richer?

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Those New Zealanders with houses and shares certainly are - at least on paper. Like almost every economy in the Western world, New Zealand is stuck in a low inflation, low interest rate cycle.

With investors getting poor returns from the bank, assets like property and shares have boomed. But inflation in other areas - including wages - has been subdued.

So if you don't have assets you are really missing out on the party.

That's making many Kiwis uneasy - even some Aucklanders in their million-dollar homes.

Still, business and consumer confidence are up and point towards more growth in the coming year.

Discover more

Companies

Kiwi gains as Fed keeps December hike alive

21 Sep 08:30 PM

We may see construction levels come off as the Christchurch rebuilds wind down but if dairy can continue its comeback then these levels may be sustainable.

We could see per capita growth lift as record migration peaks. There may even be some inflation upside, including wage growth, as pressure builds in the labour market.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

One big variable is the global economy. Right now it is all eyes on America, where markets are in a mild state of panic about the prospect of interest rate rises.

Despite the strong local GDP figure our Reserve Bank is still expected to cut interest rates once more this year, probably in November. It is also worth keeping an eye on the weather.

As eclectic as we like to think our rock star economy is, we still rely on agricultural exports.

It is now more than eight years since New Zealand had a recession. The last one wasn't caused by the global financial crisis in 2008, it was caused by drought.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from The Country

The Country

Thunderstorms, flooding to hit Auckland, top half of North Island

08 May 11:43 PM
The Country

Deer dies after dash on to Hawke's Bay Airport runway

08 May 10:51 PM
The Country

Farmers unite against council's water restrictions in Hawke's Bay

08 May 10:32 PM

One tiny baby’s fight to survive

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from The Country

Thunderstorms, flooding to hit Auckland, top half of North Island

Thunderstorms, flooding to hit Auckland, top half of North Island

08 May 11:43 PM

Downpours and flooding possible across the day.

Deer dies after dash on to Hawke's Bay Airport runway

Deer dies after dash on to Hawke's Bay Airport runway

08 May 10:51 PM
Farmers unite against council's water restrictions in Hawke's Bay

Farmers unite against council's water restrictions in Hawke's Bay

08 May 10:32 PM
Premium
On The Up: Digger driver clears 37 tyres from a beach in one day

On The Up: Digger driver clears 37 tyres from a beach in one day

08 May 06:00 PM
Connected workers are safer workers 
sponsored

Connected workers are safer workers 

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP