ASB / Main Report Regional Economic Scoreboard

Wednesday, 19 August 2015, 2:33 pm
Press Release: ASB Bank

19 August 2015

August 19 2015

ASB / Main Report Regional Economic Scoreboard

Auckland remains New Zealand’s fastest-growing city in the latest ASB/Main Report Regional Economic Scoreboard.

Having scooped the title from Canterbury in the previous March quarter, Auckland has hung on to the lead in June as the city’s house price inflation puts it in a league of its own.

But before Auckland residents get too comfortable with the pace of growth, ASB chief economist Nick Tuffley points out Auckland was not a top performer across all categories, and the construction outlook is one area which needs to lift higher.

“House price growth might be keeping Auckland in the top spot, but construction needs to really pick up if it is going to meet demand in New Zealand’s fastest growing region,” Mr Tuffley says.

Bay of Plenty was boosted to second place on the scoreboard by a better and stronger Kiwifruit industry. While enjoying the strongest jobs growth in the country, the Bay of Plenty is also riding its strong housing market, with some of the strength coming off the Auckland market’s coattails.

Waikato continues to beat the dairy blues with its move into third place on the scoreboard.

Employment growth over the quarter was a standout performer for the region and a positive sign amidst the dairy downturn. Housing market activity continues to improve, with annual sales growth in Waikato taking out the number one spot on the scoreboard.

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In other positive news, Mr Tuffley says Waikato’s consumer confidence also rebounded over the quarter.

“Waikato has several reasons why the dairy-related downturn may not be as bad for the region as many fear, with other parts of the economy driving growth,” Mr Tuffley says.

Although there’s plenty of economic activity in Canterbury, the region’s growth is plateauing and this has seen its ranking fall down the list to eighth place.

“This plateau is most noticeable in the construction outlook with residential and non-residential consents contracting from last year’s levels.

“Coping with this slowdown will be the next story for Canterbury,” Mr Tuffley says.

About the ASB/Main Report Regional Economic Scoreboard

The ASB/Main Report Regional Economic Scoreboard takes the latest quarterly regional economic statistics and ranks the performance of New Zealand’s 16 regional council areas. The fastest-growing regions gain the highest ratings and a good performance by the national economy raises ratings across the board. Ratings are based on measures such as employment, construction, retail trade and house prices.

Findings this quarter also include:

• Wellington remains on the bottom half of the scoreboard as employment growth only just keeps up with population growth and other categories track below the national average.

• Otago appears to be travelling at two speeds, with Queenstown racing along while Dunedin struggles to keep up.

• Gisborne continues to be under pressure from low population growth and by association a muted housing market. However, surging beef prices may be boosting incomes in the region and contributing to solid employment growth.

• Hawke’s Bay climbed the rankings as horticulture and viticulture continue to do well.

• The ongoing nature of the dairy and oil slump seems to have taken its toll on a number of categories in Taranaki.

The full report is available online at www.asb.co.nz

ENDS

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