Economy

Queenstown Lakes District Council is seeking public feedback on a regional diversification plan that aims to attract businesses, build on tourism expertise, and grow a local economy in other industries.

Otago and Auckland in particular are benefitting from the recovery in international travel.

Confidence within the Canterbury business sector has fallen due to uncertainty around inflation, interest rates, and demand but those in tourism-related sectors are more positive.

The return of international visitors is helping to improve New Zealand’s economy and shrink the current account deficit, according to Finance Minister Grant Robertson.

Tourism is one of the bright spots for New Zealand’s economy in an otherwise muted environment, says Westpac.

Tourism has come back faster than even Treasury expected and is one of four reasons New Zealand’s recession is not as bad as many expected, says Dominick Stephens.

Rotorua businesses are feeling more upbeat about the future of the city, according to the latest Business Pulse report by RotoruaNZ.

Businesses are grappling with a range of challenges, including a shortage of skilled workers, increasing supply chain costs, and the impacts of recent weather events. 

The key Chinese market is only in the early stages of recovery, says the bank.

Regions hit hard by the downturn in international tourism during the pandemic have made a strong recovery.

December’s 0.6% GDP slide provides an opportunity for tourism to play an important role in moving back to positive territory, TIA believes.

The strong recovery of the tourism sector has helped boost the transport sector and wider economy, according to Infometrics’ December 2022 Quarterly Economic Monitor.

The return of international travel has given the economy an unexpected lift, surprising analysts with the strength of activity.

The return of international visitors has given the country’s economy a boost.

Marlborough’s local tourism expenditure was down 7.7% in the year to June – more than the 6.6% drop reported nationally, according to Infometrics.

Queenstown Lakes District Council is seeking tenders for the implementation of its District Economic Diversification Plan.

Business confidence has dipped due to the pain of interest rates, finding skilled staff, and rising costs.

The constrained labour market and lack of overseas workers are the biggest barrier to business, the Quarterly Canterbury Business Survey

Rising costs are prompting price revisions with little room to manoeuvre in a recovering market for ITOs and suppliers.

The Ticker looks at how tourism businesses are coping with rising costs and whether they can increase prices in a recovering market.

Despite tourism spend up 16% the city’s events, hospitality and retail sectors still face challenges.

Tourism-dependent Otago has suffered from Auckland’s lockdown.

Credit defaults for businesses overall fell 5% in November compared to last month as the economy recovers heading into summer, according to Centrix.

The West Coast has made a “stunning” return to the top of ASB’s latest measure of regional economic performance. 

ASB Bank expects the economy to rebound 8% in Q4 if the elimination of Covid-19 in Auckland is successful.

Queenstown Lakes has launched a campaign to attract business leaders, employers, and talent to the district to help diversify its economy from tourism.

The divide between the north and south has widened due in part to the latter’s reliance on tourism, says the bank.

A recent BusinessNZ Planning Forecast shows gross domestic product figures “holding up well, [but] constraints to growth are rising,” says chief executive Kirk Hope.

Bank now predics a recovery in monthly international visitor arrivals around 2024.

But tourism in regions like Hawke’s Bay and Northland has fared better, says the bank.

The $450m hole that Covid-19 has punched in Auckland Council’s finances this year could grow by a further $540m by 2024, says Auckland Council.

However, tourism could start recovering from September next year with safe travel corridors possibly open.  

Tourism is the most visible casualty from Covid-19 with a “dramatically reduced” likelihood of large scale reopening of New Zealand’s borders.

Westpac and NZIER analyse the cost of lockdowns and the impact on hard-hit tourism.

Despite an improvement in business confidence, an inconvenient truth remains – there’s a very large economic hole where tourism used to be.

New Zealand’s reliance on international tourism will see it suffer more than its major trading partners as the fight against Covid-19 drags on, says ASB.

The impact of Covid-19 on the tourism sector resulted in sharp drops in confidence across most regions that relied heavily on international visitors.

Otago’s high exposure to tourism means it is facing the “biggest economic struggle” of the post-lockdown recession.

It was the largest quarterly fall since the 2.4% decline in the March 1991 quarter.

Consumer confidence is the lowest it has been since 2009, according to the latest Westpac McDermott-Miller Consumer Confidence Index.

Tourism and construction dependent regions are most at risk, say the economists.

The Covid-19 crisis may not have as severe an impact on the Bay of Plenty as other parts of New Zealand, says the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.

Former Wayfare boss, Richard Lauder, has called for the scrapping of alert levels arguing they were constructed for an upward path into lockdown, not for a move out of lockdown and a restoration of economic activity.

The report’s findings have prompted renewed calls from industry for a loosening of travel restrictions.

Unemployment could range between 13% – 26% as New Zealand tries to cope with the impact of Covid-19.

Prepare for a “tumultuous” year ahead with the winners being “those that are set up to thrive in a challenging environment”, says ASB.

Business confidence plunged over the second half of March as the Covid-19 outbreak become a global pandemic, says ANZ.

Tourism is in for a long haul back to pre-pandemic levels with the outbreak costing around 200,000 jobs, according to the country’s banks.

New Zealand could suffer one of the worst contractions in economic activity due to the Covid-19 lockdown, according to a new report.

The Reserve Bank has lowered Official Cash Rate is 0.25% from 1%, and it will remain at this level for at least the next 12 months.