Overseas visitor spending drives fall in current account deficit – Media release
16 December 2015
New Zealand’s seasonally adjusted current account balance was a deficit of $1.8 billion in the September 2015 quarter,
Statistics New Zealand said today. This is down $332 million from the June 2015 quarter. A rise in export earnings
outweighed the increase in our overseas expenditure, resulting in a smaller current account deficit.
Exports of services continued to grow in the latest quarter, to reach $5.2 billion. An increase in travel services
exports drove this increase. Travel service exports measure overseas visitors' spending while in New Zealand.
“Overseas visitor spending is driving our services surplus, which has grown each quarter since December 2013,”
international statistics manager Jason Attewell said. “On average, visitors spent more per person this quarter than
last, which was the key driver for the increase in total expenditure.”
The New Zealand dollar depreciated against most of our major currencies in the September 2015 quarter, which caused the
exchange rate to rise. “The falling New Zealand dollar may also have been a factor in attracting visitors to New Zealand
as the better exchange rate meant visitors could get more for their money,” Mr Attewell said.
New Zealand’s annual current account deficit was $8.1 billion (3.3 percent of GDP) for the year ended September 2015.
This compares with a deficit of $8.3 billion for the year ended June 2015. This is the first time the annual current
account deficit has decreased between quarters since the year ended June 2014. The reduced deficit was again mainly due
to the continued rise in spending by overseas visitors to New Zealand. For the year ended September 2015, the number of
international visitors to New Zealand and the average spend per person both increased.
Ends
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