New Zealand GDP down by 3.7 per cent

| December 15, 2021

New Zealand’s Delta outbreak sunk economic output in the September quarter, with GDP falling by 3.7 per cent.

Stats NZ said the figure, released on Thursday, represents the second largest fall since it started counting in 1986.

“The four industries with the largest falls in activity were retail, accommodation, and restaurants; manufacturing; construction; and arts and recreation,” Stats NZ spokeswoman Ruvani Ratnayake said.

“They were the most affected by lockdown measures.”

The fall follows two steady quarters of growth as New Zealand enjoyed months without widespread COVID-19 community transmission.

That run ended in August, when the Delta variant arrived from NSW, courtesy of a border leak.

New Zealand spent three weeks in lockdown from August 17, while Auckland – home to one third of the population and 40 per cent of the country’s economy – stayed under restrictions for more than three months.

Almost 10,000 Kiwis have caught the virus in the latest outbreak, and 21 have died of New Zealand’s overall toll of 47 fatalities.

In the September quarter, household consumption expenditure fell by 7.5 per cent and investment expenditure dropped by 5.3 per cent.

The annual GDP figure to September 30 is a 4.9 per cent rise, however, Stats NZ advises caution in using the figure due to COVID disruptions.