Gross domestic product: March 2019 quarter
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Gross domestic product: March 2019 quarter – supplementary tables
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Key facts
In the March 2019 quarter:
- New Zealand economy grew 0.6 percent
- goods-producing industries grew 2.0 percent, driving economic growth
- growth in service industries eased, up 0.2 percent
- primary industries continued to fall, down 0.7 percent
- household spending was up 0.5 percent
- investment spending was up 2.4 percent
- exports of goods and services was up 2.8 percent
- GDP per capita rose 0.1 percent
- real purchasing power of New Zealand’s income was up 0.6 percent.
New Zealand economy grows 0.6 percent
Economic activity, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP), was up 0.6 percent in the March 2019 quarter, the same growth seen in the December 2018 quarter.
GDP grew 2.7 percent over the year ended March 2019.
Goods-producing industries had the strongest growth this quarter, up 2.0 percent. Growth in the service industries eased to 0.2 percent, after a broad-based growth of 0.9 percent in the December 2018 quarter. Primary industries dropped 0.7 percent.
Goods-producing industries drive economic growth
Activity in the goods-producing industries rose 2.0 percent in the March 2019 quarter. The growth was mainly driven by increased activity in the construction industry (up 3.7 percent), its largest increase since the September 2017 quarter. The rise in construction was reflected in investment in non-residential building (up 9.9 percent) and residential buildings (up 2.7 percent).
Manufacturing activity rose 1.4 percent in the March 2019 quarter, after a 0.4 percent decline in the December 2018 quarter. Increased food, beverage, and tobacco manufacturing contributed strongly to the rise this quarter. There were also increases in metal product manufacturing; non-metallic mineral manufacturing; and petroleum, chemical, polymer, and rubber product manufacturing.
Growth in service industries eases
Activity in the service industries rose 0.2 percent in the March 2019 quarter, the slowest growth rate since the September 2012 quarter. Of the 11 service industries, seven recorded growth.
The main drivers of this quarter’s growth were health care and social assistance (up 1.7 percent) and transport, postal, and warehousing (up 1.2 percent). Retail, accommodation, and restaurants fell 0.5 percent. Lower activity in accommodation and restaurants reflected a dip in visitor arrivals to New Zealand in February and March 2019 (see Visitor arrivals dip down in March). Rental, hiring, and real estate services fell 0.2 percent due to fewer property sales in the March 2019 quarter.
Service industries grew 3.1 percent in the year ended March 2019.
Primary industries continue to fall
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing production fell 2.3 percent in the March 2019 quarter, after a 0.3 percent fall in the December 2018 quarter. The fall in the latest quarter was due to unfavourable weather conditions. Agriculture (down 2.3 percent), forestry and logging (down 1.2 percent), and fishing (down 0.4 percent) all declined. This was offset by a rise in mining (up 9.6 percent), due to higher exploration activity along with an increase in oil and gas extraction.
Household spending up
Household spending grew 0.5 percent in the March 2019 quarter, after a 1.0 percent rise in the December 2018 quarter. Growth was subdued this quarter due to lower spending on services (up 0.3 percent). This was the weakest growth in services expenditure since the December 2014 quarter. Spending on durable and non-durable goods increased 1.4 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively.
Investment spending up
Investment in fixed assets was up 2.4 percent in the March 2019 quarter. Higher construction activity was reflected in higher construction-related investment expenditure.
Business investment (all investment less residential buildings) rose 1.9 percent. Higher investment in non-residential buildings was the main contributor to the increase. Investment in residential buildings also rose during the quarter. These increases were partly offset by lower investment in other construction.
Exports of goods and services up
Exports of goods and services rose 2.8 percent in the March 2019 quarter, the highest quarterly increase since the December 2014 quarter. High dairy export volumes made a strong contribution to the 5.3 percent rise in goods exports during the quarter. Imports of goods and services rose 0.7 percent.
GDP per capita up
GDP per capita increased 0.1 percent in the March 2019 quarter, after an increase of 0.2 percent in the December 2018 quarter.
For the March 2019 year, GDP per capita was up 0.9 percent.
Real purchasing power of New Zealand’s income up 0.6 percent
New Zealand’s ability to buy goods and services from its income improved in the March 2019 quarter. Real gross national disposable income (RGNDI), which measures the real purchasing power of the country’s disposable income, increased 0.6 percent.
A 1.0 percent rise in the terms of trade aided GDP growth of 0.6 percent this quarter. A slight improvement in the net flow of income from overseas also contributed to the RGNDI rise. The improved net flow of income from overseas was a result of an improvement in our net investment income flow outweighing a decline in our net transfers income flow.
With a population increase of 0.5 percent over the March 2019 quarter, RGNDI per capita rose 0.1 percent.
Annually, RGNDI was up 2.5 percent over the March 2019 year, and RGNDI per capita was up 0.6 percent.
RGNDI measures the volumes of goods and services that New Zealand residents have command over, while GDP measures economic activity. RGNDI is also affected by changes in the terms of trade, as well as the country’s net investment income and net transfer flows with the rest of the world.
Terms of trade is the ratio of the price of exports to the price of imports. An increase in the terms of trade occurs when export prices rise by more than import prices and result in fewer exports needed to pay for a given volume of imports. This means residents can purchase a larger volume of goods and services from the incomes generated by a given level of domestic production.
Overseas trade indexes (prices and volumes): March 2019 quarter (provisional) provides the terms of trade export and import price movements.
Balance of payments and international investment position: March 2019 quarter has information on net investment income and transfer flows.
International growth comparison – New Zealand compared with trade partners – Mar 2019 quarter
| Country | Quarterly percentage change in GDP | Change from same quarter previous year |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 0.6 | 2.5 |
| Australia | 0.4 | 1.8 |
| Canada | 0.1 | 1.3 |
| Euro area (19 countries) | 0.4 | 1.2 |
| European Union (28 countries) | 0.5 | 1.5 |
| Japan | 0.6 | 0.9 |
| OECD – Total | 0.5 | 1.8 |
| United Kingdom | 0.5 | 1.8 |
| United States | 0.8 | 3.2 |
| As at 17 June 2019 | ||
OECD.Stat has GDP data for other countries. Care should be taken when comparing New Zealand’s GDP figures with those of other countries, as the methodology used varies internationally.
Revisions
We have incorporated some revisions in this release.
See Datainfo+ for details.
Text alternative for Gross domestic product, industry growth and contribution to growth, March 2019 quarter
Image shows a column graph, pie chart, and bar chart showing growth, share of the economy, and contribution to growth in the March 2019 quarter for the primary, goods-producing, and services industries. Column chart shows the service industries grew 0.2 percent, goods-producing grew 2.0 percent, and primary declined 0.7 percent. Pie chart shows that service industries make up about two-thirds of GDP, goods-producing about one-fifth and primary about one-twentieth. Bar chart shows industry contribution to the GDP growth rate: primary 0.0 percentage points, goods-producing 0.4 percentage points, and services 0.1 percentage points.
More data
Use Infoshare to access the national accounts time series.
Subject category: Economic indicators
Group: National accounts – SNA 2008
Gross domestic product visualisation is an interactive tool showing quarterly changes in the production of the different industries in New Zealand's economy.
Definitions and metadata
National accounts quarterlies – DataInfo+ provides the general methodology used to produce these statistics.
National accounts quarterlies – concepts – DataInfo+ provides the definitions of terms used in this release.
Overview of sources and methods for quarterly gross domestic product: Updates and COVID-19 adjustments provides an overview of changes to our usual quarterly GDP methods, including alternative data sources and methods we are using to measure the effects of COVID-19 in New Zealand.
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ISSN 1178-0290
Next release
Gross domestic product: June 2019 quarter will be released on 19 September 2019.
