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Following a tight-budgeted start to the year, many Kiwis had expected the economy to decrease in June but recent GDP figures show more growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says.
Stats NZ figures put GDP growth for the June 2026 quarter at 0.2 per cent, following upwardly revised growth of 0.9 per cent in the March quarter.
“The first half of this year was tough as families and business dealt with a sharp spike in fuel prices caused by the conflict in the Middle East,” Willis says.
“The Reserve Bank had pencilled in flat growth for the June quarter, and many economists had been picking the economy to shrink. Instead, it grew.
“That’s a credit to New Zealand’s construction sector, who saw their largest increase in activity since June 2023 with an uptick in residential building activity.”
Exporters also held up better than expected and kept the economy moving through a difficult few months, Willis says.
“A growing economy means more jobs and higher wages. It means more money coming into communities. It means more doctors, nurses and teachers, and better schools and hospitals,” she says.
Willis says New Zealand’s economic growth over the year to June has been higher than many international figures including Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and the European Union.
“Our responsible economic management means growth is expected to average 2.7 per cent over the next four years, with 220,000 new jobs being created by 2030 and wages growing faster than household bills every single year,” Willis adds.
But global uncertainty hasn’t dissolved, with fuel prices sitting much higher than they were at the beginning of the year, Willis says households and businesses will continue to be tested in the months to come.
“Despite the international situation, New Zealanders can be confident the recovery is well underway.”
