“The fact that central government spending and an increase in inventory levels made the biggest positive contributions to growth highlights the economy’s static nature,” he said. The primary sector continued to experience strong growth with a rise of 0.9% for the quarter. However, rental, hiring and real estate services were the largest contributors to the overall increase in GDP, up 0.8% in the quarter. “The volume of building work put in place, a key input into how Stats NZ measures GDP, fell 3.1% in the December 2025 quarter,” Attewell said. The business sector also contributed to slower growth, as private sector investment spending fell by 3.2% from September, its largest quarterly decline in over two years.

Source: New Zealand Herald March 19, 2026 03:44 UTC