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
  • 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

Regional 'catch-up' to Auckland tests capacity

Otago Daily Times
18 Jul, 2018 04:00 AM3 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

Jarrod Kerr

Jarrod Kerr

New Zealand's regions are playing catch-up with Auckland and capacity constraints are already evident in parts, Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr says.

Auckland represented nearly 40% of the country and had a disproportionate impact on national figures.

Auckland was cooling, migration was cooling and growth was cooling, for now, he said in Kiwi Outlook.

Some regions had already lifted economic growth.

''Our 'green maps' show slower growth compared to 2016, and the near-term outlook is mixed. But we believe the long-term outlook is much better. Our strengthening ties to Asia will bring more demand for everything from food to education, and tourism to housing.''

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

While much of the Kiwi Outlook focused on the country's housing market, it also reviewed tourism, the labour market, retail sales and the risks the regions faced.

The risks to the outlook were all foreign and ugly, Mr Kerr said.

The rising risk of a trade war between economic giants would hurt global confidence and growth.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

''A full-blown trade war is still unlikely but the characters we are dealing with look like something off a B-grade Hollywood horror.''

With United States President Donald Trump in charge, the intellectual debate with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Chinese president Xi Jinping, German chancellor Angela Merkel and others was baffling. Yet, the world was forced to focus on it, he said.

To date, the tariff announcements were a rounding error when considering economic impact although the potential for something far worse was too high to ignore.

China, New Zealand's largest trading partner, was involved in the scuffle. Australia, New Zealand's second-largest trading partner was more leveraged to China than this country.

Discover more

Rangitikei farmers urged to try plantain

19 Jul 05:00 AM

''Luckily, we grow more inelastic goods - economist speak for 'you need it' - but we're not immune to a sharp downturn or global recession. And all regions will be impacted to some extent.''

For now, the threat of a trade war did not mean much for the regions, Mr Kerr said.

Every part of the country would react differently to foreign distress. For now, it was time to focus on what was actually happening and what was likely to happen and what was happening was good enough, for now.

The Kiwi Outlook showed the labour market was the strongest in the South, and performed well in the March quarter.

The unemployment rate reached a nine-year low of 4.4% and employment growth a ''respectable'' 3.1%.

Employment appeared to be strong in the tourism-weighted South, he said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Otago, including the Queenstown-Lakes District, experienced an almost 10% annual jump in employment. The region also had a solid 2.3% rise in population in 2017 - similar to rates of growth recorded in upper North Island regions.

The Tasman-Nelson-Marlborough-West Coast region experienced a 4.8% increase in employment.

In the North Island, Northland East Coast had increases in job numbers, Mr Kerr said.

Employment could jump around at a regional level. The Manawatu-Whanganui region experienced a heavy 6.2% fall in the quarter, the only dull spot in a region that was otherwise in fine fettle.

Retail sales were broadly weaker in the March quarter and there were few regions that did not reflect the national trend.

Tourism was strong in the South and was expected to grow throughout the country.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save

    Share this article

Latest from The Country

live
The Country

'Threat to life': Tasman District upgraded to red warning; floodwater enters homes

10 Jul 11:17 PM
The Country

How NZ is tackling worker protection issues in the primary industries

10 Jul 10:30 PM
The Country

Dog helps find rare bird colony 'not seen for decades'

10 Jul 10:28 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from The Country

'Threat to life': Tasman District upgraded to red warning; floodwater enters homes
live

'Threat to life': Tasman District upgraded to red warning; floodwater enters homes

10 Jul 11:17 PM

Electrical storms are set to hit at evening rush as Auckland braces for 16 hours of rain.

How NZ is tackling worker protection issues in the primary industries

How NZ is tackling worker protection issues in the primary industries

10 Jul 10:30 PM
Dog helps find rare bird colony 'not seen for decades'

Dog helps find rare bird colony 'not seen for decades'

10 Jul 10:28 PM
Mahia Hunt holds final fixture after marking 125th anniversary

Mahia Hunt holds final fixture after marking 125th anniversary

10 Jul 09:05 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

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
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • 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